My Version of Crisis Core
by Bunny Fair
Summary: This is my version of Crisis Core (as title indicates). I tried to keep it as accurate as possible but kept several things out. I only own my OC's and I do not own anything else.
1. Chapter 1

Angeal stared at the pile of paperwork on his desk. He looked over at Zack, who was doing some of Angeal's work as punishment. Genesis walked in, not bothering to knock. He slammed two files on Angeal's desk, disturbing a few papers. Zack looked up curiously.

Genesis sat down in the empty chair, pulling out LOVELESS. "We've got two problems."

Angeal sighed. "What did the puppy do this time?"

Zack pouted. "I've been in here all day! My hand's cramping from writing so much."

Genesis shook his head. "You're in the clear this time, pup. Two females are going to join SOLDIER. One as a First; the other a Second. Look through their files and tell me what you think about them."

Angeal opened the thinner folder and looked at the picture. The girl had black hair and dark blue eyes. She seemed to be glaring half-heartedly at something to the right. Below the picture was her information.

Name: Angel (I'm not given anything else)

Age: 22

Height: 5'11

Weight: Not given.

Weapon(s): Two Buster Swords.

Hometown: Name not given

Family: No blood relatives. Her close friend is referred to as her adopted sister. (touch her and die)

Specialties: Can snap any bone in half without trying too hard. Heals relatively quickly. Is especially good with fire magic.

Current Occupation: Mercenary for hire (don't question it)

Psychological Exam: Aggressive towards people instinctivly. Has slight social anxiety. May explain aggressiveness. Personal questions regarding home or family are answered harshly if answered at all. Has extreme protectiveness towards adoptive sister.

Criminal Record: Several accounts of murder. All were self-defense or protecting someone. Some minor assaults. Never been to jail.

Any need to know facts? I don't take people's shit under any circumstance. If you harm my friends, I wil personally handle you. I don't have a short temper, I'm just aggressive. That's enough for now.

Angeal sighed. "Great. Just what Shin-Ra needed; more violence."

Genesis nodded. "There's a Q&A on the next page."

Angeal flipped to the next page, dreading it already.

1\. What is your full name?

Angel is the name I go by.

2\. Any nicknames?

Bloodied Angel is pretty common. Only Kitty is allowed to call me sissy-boo.

3\. Do you have any relatives?

Kitty is my adoptive sister.

4\. What is your favorite food?

BBQ

5\. What is your favorite season and why?

Fall because the leaves turn to the colors of fire.

6\. What do you do on a regular basis?

Train, fight, read, eat, keep Kitty out of trouble

7\. What's your favorite color(s)?

Any firey colors.

8\. Do you own a pet?

Does Kitty count? She requires a lot of attention. No? Then, no, I don't.

9\. Favorite holiday?

Halloween so I can scare Kitty all day long

10\. On a scale of 1-10 how crazy are you?

On a good day, 3-5. Bad day, 7-9

Angeal closed the file. "So this one is a pyro who loves fighting. What's wrong with the other one?"

Genesis scoffed. "What's _not_ wrong with the other one is the true question. Read it and you'll see why."

Zack put the papers down and stood behind Angeal quietly. Angeal opened it and looked at the picture. The girl didn't look very intimidating. She had blond hair in two pigtails on her shoulders and golden-brown eyes.

Name: Katherine. (Call me Kitty)

Age: 17

Height: 5'6 (I'm not short dammit!)

Weight: Not given.

Weapon(s): Typically a staff. Daggers for short range.

Hometown: Name not given.

Family: No blood relatives. (I've got my sissy-boo, though)

Specialties: Is extremely flexible and lithe. Acts almost like a cat. Is very skilled with computers and thievery. Is highly skilled in magic; especially white magic,

Current Occupation: Thief for hire.

Psychological Exam: Has extreme insomnia. Sleeps very little at night. She has extreme social anxiety, almost to the point of social phobia. She is bipolar at times, especially during fights and PMS-ing. Her mind creates objects in shadows, causing paranoia. Once again, mainly during night. May be cause of insomnia. Also has extreme phobia of spiders and heights.

Criminal Record: Many accounts of thievery, breaking-and-entering, hacking. Most hackings were to help gain information about targets for Angel. 90% of thievery are excused due to government asking for her help on espionage.

Any need to know facts? I don't take people's shit, like sissy-boo. I don't like it when people call me or my sissy names. That's where my aggressiveness comes in at. I'm actually passive-aggressive on a good day. Sissy calls me Kitty because I act like a cat. She also says I'm an owl because I'm most active at night and am pretty lazy during the day. I think I'm good for now.

Angeal and Zack both blinked. "A bipolar shorty who has paranoia and acts like she's part cat?"

Zack shrugged. "She's a cutie. though."

Angeal hit Zack's head with the file. "Get back to work before I add on more."

Zack pouted, slumping in his shoulders as he sat back in the chair. Angeal reopened the file to read the Q&A.

1\. What is your full name?

Katherine. Only special people can call me that. Or when sissy needs my attention/when she's fussing at me.

2\. Any nicknames?

Kitty is pretty common. Sissy calls me Reece because I may or may not be addicted to Reece's Cups. May or may not.

3\. Do you have any relatives?

I have my sissy-boo and that's all I need.

4\. What is your favorite food?

Anything sweet.

5\. What is your favorite season and why?

Spring. That's when all the pretty flowers are in bloom. I feel sick when the pollen gets to me though.

6\. What do you do on a regular basis?

Eat, sleep, bother people, get scolded by sissy, sleep some more, do a little bit of work, sleep, stay awake all night.

7\. What is your favorite color(s)?

I prefer darker colors.

8\. Do you own a pet?

I do have a coeurl, but she comes and goes. She can always find where I'm at. Her name is Coral.

9\. Favorite holiday?

Either Thanksgiving because of food or Halloween because of candy.

10\. On a scale of 1-10 how crazy are you?

On a good day, 8-10. When I'm mad or having a bad day, 10-15. More towards 15.

Angeal closed the file slowly, blinking at Genesis. "She's got a pet _coeurl_. This one's more insane than the first. Now we're going to have two puppies instead of one. Just what we needed. When are they arriving?"

Genesis shrugged. "I believe either today or tomorrow. Can't rememeber what Shinra said. Anyway, they should definitely brighten up the place. If not, cause more trouble and excitement."

Angeal rolled his eyes. "If not that, more stress for me."

Zack laughed at this. "And how long have you been mentoring me?"

"More work for a whole week."

Zack gaped at him. "B-But it's true! Is it not?! I should've already caused you to grow gray hairs and you're perfectly fine! All black up there."

Genesis stepped beside Angeal's desk, pulling at the man's black hairs. He tugged out one in particular. "Is this a gray hair? But Angeal, you're still so young."

Zack floundered. "Genesis! You're no help, man!"

Genesis smirked. "I never said I was helping anyone. I'll speak to you later, Angeal. Good luck controlling your puppy. You know how hormones control his brain."

Zack simpered at Angeal's consending look. "I've never done anything if that's what you're worried about."

Angeal sighed. "Two puppies is the last thing I need. One is bad enough."


	2. Chapter 2

The two girls stepped off the train as it stopped. The taller girl had her black hair tied back into a ponytail and her dark blue eyes were behind a pair of black sunglasses. She wore a long, dark red jacket over a pair of dark pants and tank-top. On her feet was a pair of combat boots.

Beside her, the shorter girl had two blond pigtails on her shoulders. Her golden-brown eyes darted around nervously as she stuck close to her friends' side. She wore a white cloak with orange triangles lining the rim. She wore a pair of lace-up boots with a pair of leggings tucked into them and a long-sleeved black shirt.

They each carried a duffel bag on one of their shoulders. The taller girl had two Buster Swords strapped to her back. People went out of their way to avoid her. The shorter girl clung to a staff as they walked through the crowds.

Kitty looked at the poorly drawn map, then at the tall building they stopped in front of. "So, this is Shin-Ra?"

Angel nodded. "Guess so. Unless these directions are wrong and the sign is lying to us."

Kitty laughed lightly as they stepped inside. "They could be. That one fella looked like some creepy perv who lures girls to his harem for his amusement."

Angel sighed as they walked to the front desk. "You say that about everyone you meet that's male. Our names are Angel and Kitty. I believe the President is expecting us."

The young woman behind the desk nodded, typing on her computer. "Yes, he is. Go to the top floor and go all the way down the hall. It's the last door to the left. You can't miss it. First, please hand me your weapons."

Kitty gripped her staff tightly. "Why do you need our weapons?"

"I'm sorry if you feel offended. It's merely a precaution."

Angel nodded, lifting the two swords off her back. The young woman wrote her name on two tags and tied them to hilt before straining to place them against a wall. Kitty reluctantly handed over her staff and leaned over to slide the daggers out of her boots. The young woman stared in shock as Kitty pulled several guns off of her form. The holsters remained hidden by her shawl.

The woman simply took a small plastic box and placed the guns inside with Kitty's name on the lid. "They'll still be here when you return for them. The president is waiting for you."

The girls nodded and Kitty shifted closer to Angel as she noticed the eyes on her. Other than the young woman, they were the only females. SOLDIER was 99.99% male. The tiny .01% were female desk workers. Not a single member of the fighters were female. Until now, that is.

Angel gently grabbed Kitty's forearm. "It's alright, Kitty. Once they see us fight, they'll leave you alone. Plus, you've got your big sister here."

Kitty nodded, clinging to Angel's side. The elevator stopped at the 49th floor and two males walked in. They both had black hair, but the shorter male's hair was more like a porcupine.

The older male stopped short. "Are you young ladies heading to the president as well?"

Angel nodded as Kitty hid behind her. "Yes, sir. We're the new recruits."

He nodded as the younger male hopped into the elevator. Kitty scooted closer to Angel as he looked over at her. "You're a little cutie."

Angel gave him a glare. "You back off my sister. We don't know you and you don't know us, so don't flirt until you do."

The teen simpered as the older male chuckled. "My name's Angeal and I'm the Puppy's mentor. He's harmless enough."

Zack glared up at Angeal. "Hey! Don't tell them that stupid nickname."

Kitty giggled and the elevator stopped. She looked at it curiously. "Huh. That was a short ride."

Angeal nodded. "Shin-Ra likes having nice things. The trick is making sure they stay working. Here's the president's office. Fair warning, don't be offended by anything he says and don't harm him. He doesn't take lightly to that."

He held the door open and let the girls walk in first. The president looked to be a short, portly man with a blond mustache and hair. His piercing, blue eyes watched the two girls sit down. Kitty ignored the cushion and sat down on the arm of Angel's chair.

Zack and Angeal walked inside, shutting the door behind them. "Good," the president began, "you're all here. Angel and Kitty, the first test you two have to fight against Angeal and Zack together. This will be a great exercise for your teamwork and to see how well you two do against two trained SOLDIERs in the flesh. Do not worry about holding back against them."

Angel nodded. "You two have a problem with that?"

Angeal shook his head. "Of course not."

Zack smirked. "You two haven't had Mako injections yet. Don't expect to win against us."

Angel smirked as Kitty simply said, "Don't get cocky. We've been working together for the past seven years. I'm guessing that's longer than you two have been."

Zack chuckled sheepishly. "Got us there. But still, we're bigger and probably a lot stronger." Angeal sighed, wanting to slap his pupil.

President Shinra chuckled lowly. "This is going to be an interesting battle. I can't wait to watch."

Angeal raised an eyebrow. "You're going watch?"

The short man nodded, standing. "Yes. You have five minutes to prepare and gather the weapons you plan on using. We have an entire arsenal of weapons for you to choose from."

Angel shook her head. "Don't worry about that. We have our own, sir. We just need to retrieve them."

~A few minutes later~

Kitty double-checked the guns for ammuntion. They were all full and ready to be fired. She made sure they strapped on tightly to her form. Zack looked over at her curiously. "Why do you have so many guns? Why are they strapped so tightly to you?"

Kitty shyly said, "You'll see. You are like a puppy with these questions."

The simulation room changed into a large arena with several pillars. Angel called Kitty over to her and Kitty stood beside her. Angel quietly asked, "How should we do this?"

Kitty tilted her head to the side, eyeing Zack and Angeal. "I don't think they work together like we do. I don't think Angeal will use that big sword unless he's forced to. Zack's movements are wild and erratic, but you'll know if he makes contact."

Angel nodded. "Start off separately before teaming up. Sound good."

Kitty grinned as her pupils dilated, almost covering her entire iris'. "I get a treat if we win, right?"

Angel rolled her eyes. She should've figured Kitty would let her dark side take over. "Of course. Don't be reckless."

"I call dibs on the pup."

Somebody shot off a gun, signalling the start of the fight. Kitty disappeared as Angel drew one of her swords. Angeal charged towards Angel as Zack looked around for Kitty cautiously, his sword drawn.

He jumped back as a large chunk of rock was tossed his way. He heard giggling and caught a glimpse of Kitty's white shawl before a large fireball was sent towards him. He dived out the way, mumbling, "Dammit, this girl's not going to let me get close to her."

He jumped, hearing a voice next to his ear. "You wanna play closer? Okie dokie~"

Zack swung his sword, but it was stopped by a pair twin daggers. He noticed that Kitty's pupils were dilated to extreme propportions. He silently cursed, jumping back away from her.

Angeal regretted choosing to fight Angel. He didn't want to fight Kitty, for fear of injuring her and hurting his own honor. Angel swung her Buster Sword with one hand, using her other to deflect his blows.

Her hand didn't have a single mark on it from his sword. He didn't want to use his own Buster Sword, but this was a quickly losing fight. He glanced at Zack for a moment, only to be kicked in his stomach.

He stumbled back, catching his breath. Angel smirked at him. "You should pay attention to your own fight. Kitty shouldn't hurt him too badly."

He drew his Buster Sword, dropping the smaller sword. "'Too badly'?"

Angel shrugged. She drew her other Buster Sword. Now, she held one in hand. "I'm sure you've read our files. She's bipolar. You can tell when her dark side comes out because her pupils dilate more than usual. Now, let's fight."

Kitty twirled around Zack. She had replaced one of her daggers with her staff. She hit Zack's head once again with her staff. He growled lowly, slashing at her with his sword. She dodged, giggling hysterically. "Gotta be faster than that, puppy~"

He glared. Zack reached into his pocket and grabbed a small potion. He downed it quickly, feeling the energy rush through his veins. The potion was no normal healing potion. It was a haste potion.

Now that his movement were faster, he could keep up with Kitty. Kitty's giggling increased as he cut her arm. Blood stained her arm and shawl quickly. She laughed, running over to Angel.

Angel noticed this and shoved Angeal away from her. She quickly sheathed her swords and met Kitty half-way. Kitty jumped up, using her staff as leverage. Her staff fell to the floor and she tossed her bloodied shawl off.

Angel lifted Kitty onto her shoulders so Kitty was wrapped around her neck like a snake. Kitty's legs straightened out and Angel began to shoot the guns strapped to them at the two males.

Zack now understood why they were so tightly strapped to her. He dodged the bullets, thanking the haste potion for his new speed. He hid behind a pillar, panting beside Angeal. "So, you decided to use your sword? Not worried about wear, tear, or rust?"

Angeal lightly glared at him. "This is an emergency. I didn't realize how strong they were."

Zack nodded. "That smaller one, Kitty, is insane. Her file wasn't lying when it said she was bipolar."

"We can't hide behind here forever. I'll cover you."

"Got it."

Angeal stepped out from behind the pillar, Zack staying close behind him. Angeal blocked the bullets with his massive sword. Kitty had moved on Angels' shoulders, now having her own shoulders pressed against her sisters'. Her face was slowly turning red from being upside-down.

Kitty bent her body and Angel shot off the large gun on her back. Angeal held his ground as the sword rattled in his grip. The two males wondered how Kitty could move so easily with so many guns strapped to her small form.

Once they were close enough, Zack got ready to jump as Angeal crouched down. Zack let out a battle cry as he jumped off of Angeal's sword, swinging his own at the two girls. Kitty stared in shock as the sword cut her left thigh.

The wound wasn't particularly wide, but was thick. Kitty screamed loudly, nearly shattering the two-sided glass that the few spectators were behind. Angel winced at the sound and set Kitty on the floor.

Zack stared in shock as the simulation ended. A small pool of blood formed around her leg, staining his boots. Angel took off her belt and tied it tightly above the wound. She turned to Angeal. "Do you have a potion?"

Angeal nodded, tossing one to her. She uncorked it with her teeth and stuffed a piece of her jacket in Kitty's mouth. "Bite down on this. Gotta keep that tongue." Kitty did, with tears streaming down her face.

Angel poured the potion directly onto the wound. Kitty bit down harder on the jacket, her screams muffled. Angel winced at the sound. Angel truely hated seeing Kitty in this much pain.

The wound began to close, leaving a dark red mark. Angel sighed in relief as the blood stopped pouring and Kitty's screams turned into faint whimpers.

Zack had an apologetic look on his face. "I didn't mean to hurt her so badly. I'm _so_ sorry, Kitty."

Kitty hissed at him, letting her sharp teeth show. He flinched, looking down. Angel looked up at him. "She'll be okay. She's just in pain right now. Don't expect her to be nice to anyone except me. Is there a doctor here or someone along those lines?"

Angeal nodded. "I'll show you the way. I must warn you, he's a little... um... crazy."

Angel scooped Kitty into her arms. Kitty wimpered as her leg was moved. Angel looked down at her apologeticly. "Let's get going before she starts screaming again."

"I agree."

Zack sadly watched them leave. He grabbed Kitty's fallen shawl and staff. He looked at the bullet casings around him. Those two girls were powerful together and very close. He had a feeling that if he were to fight them as enemies, they'd kill him without mercy. Zack figured he should be nicer to them and start by washing the blood from her white shawl. Even if he hated doing his own laundry.


	3. Chapter 3

Angel looked at Dr. Hojo as she laid Kitty on an empty examination table. Dr. Hojo eyed the young girl's leg. "Yes, I can fix her without scarring her beautiful skin. It's so soft and testable!"

Angel glared, grabbing his wrist in a tight grip. "You touch her in any way and I won't think about killing you." She growled at him.

Dr. Hojo cackled. "Got it; strictly formal. No testing or anything without your permission, correct?" His tone was extremely sarcastic towards her.

Angel's grip tightened. If she didn't have such good self-control, she would've already broken his wrist. He stopped his cackling and stared at her. "If she comes back to me with anything missing or changed, I'm going to come after you."

Dr. Hojo nodded. "Nothing missing. Am I allowed to do a small Mako-injection on her?"

Angel's eyes narrowed. "What will Mako do to her?"

He rolled his eyes. "I watched your fight briefly. You are already stong enough and don't require it to join SOLDIER. This one is weaker and will do better with Mako running through her veins. Mako makes you stronger and faster. I don't think she needs the speed, but the strength and durability will help her in the long run. Unless, of course, you enjoy seeing her in pain and suffering."

Angel looked down at Kitty, who was wimpering at the slightest movement of her leg. "Fine. Inject her with your Mako. I'm serious about the missing limb thing, though. She misses anything and you'll be missing twice as many. Got it?"

Dr. Hojo rolled his eyes. "She'll be perfectly fine in my hands. Oh, Angeal! Are you here for your annual check-up?"

Angeal paled slightly. "No. I've still got a while. Let's go, Angel. I'll show you where you can stay until you get your own place."

Angel sighed. "Thanks. I'll just sleep on the couch. I'll even help you cook dinner."

Angeal chuckled, leading her to the elevator. "Don't worry about dinner. I've got some leftovers in the fridge. I hope you don't mind."

Angel shook her head. "No worries. I'm used to eating leftovers. That's what we'd have every other night for dinner. You think Hojo'll take care of her?"

"After that threat, I'm sure he won't experiment on her. If it'll make you feel better you can punish the Puppy."

"As nice as that sounds, I'll pass. I think he already feels bad enough. What's that?" Angeal leaned down and picked up the white cloth in front of his door. A staff fell from it. Angel picked it up. "This is Kitty's. Zack must've put it here."

Angeal nodded. "It looks like he washed her shawl, too. This note says, 'I'm sorry for stabbing Kitty. I washed the blood out of her shawl. I hope she forgives me. From, Zack.' And I've never once seen him do any form of cleaning."

Angel laughed lightly as Angeal unlocked the door to his apartment. They stepped inside and Angeal closed the door. Angel looked around curiously. The apartment was very nice. A simple kitchen, den, and three closed doors in a small hallway.

Angeal opened one door and set in sword in it. "You can put your weapons in here if you want. Here's the bathroom and the bedroom. Obviously, the kitchen and den. Genesis told me earlier he was coming over for a visit. If you don't mind."

Angel shook her head, setting her swords and Kitty's staff in the weapons closet. She eyed his sword and the new dent in it. "I don't mind. Sorry about your sword."

"I can get it fixed. You want something to eat?"

Before she could answer, there was a knock on the door before it opened. A red-haired male wearing a red coat walked in. Angeal sighed. "I've told you time and time again to let me open the door, Gen."

Genesis shrugged, settling himself on the couch. He held a light pink book in his hands. "So, Angeal, have you heard about those new Mako injections?"

Angel gave him a look. "What 'new' injections?"

He gave her a small smile. If it was intended to be flirtatious, she was immune to it. "I didn't know you had comany, Ang. You should've told me and I would've brought flowers or wine. My name is Genesis Rhapsodos. What is yours, fine lady?"

Angel smiled sweetly and placed her hand in his open one. She gripped his hand tightly. He writhed in his seat slightly. Angeal chuckled. "You shouldn't flirt with this one, Gen. I guessed you missed our fight earlier."

Genesis nodded as Angel let go of his hand. "No, I did not watch your battle. Anyway, Hojo and a few scientists created a new form of Mako. It supposedly adds animal-like extremeties."

Angel looked at him with wide eyes. "What do you mean by that?"

Genesis rolled his eyes. "Do you not understand what extremeties are? It means the person injected with it will grow animal body parts."

Angel was out the door before either men could blink. She ignored the elevator, taking the stairs instead. She skipped stairs, stumbling slightly.

Not ten minutes later, she was pinning Dr. Hojo against a wall. "Where the hell is she?!"

He merely chuckled at her. "I don't know who you're talking about. Are you talking about that little specimen you left in my care?"

She growled at him, pushing a scapel against his neck. "Where. Is. She. Tell me before I cut your throat."

A drop of sweat ran down his cheek. "Fine, you bitch. She's in the room down the hall to the left. Third door down. Don't expect to see her breathing."

She growled lowly before letting him go. She took a step back before punching him. He went down, red on his right cheek. Angel ran down the hallway, shoving people out of her way. She wrenched open the door and saw two chairs in front of a window.

She looked through the glass and saw Kitty. She was laying down on a sterile white table with restraints on her arms and legs. She seemed to be sleeping.

Angel sighed in relief and sat down in a chair. She kept her eyes on Kitty, even when the door opened and Angeal sat beside her. "I see you found her. What did Hojo say?"

"He just told me where she was. I knocked him out afterwards."

Angeal chuckled. "That explains why he was out cold. She looks to be alright. For the time being, at least for the time being."

Angel nodded, but winced as Kitty started screaming. Angel pressed herself against the glass wall, willing it to disappear. Kitty writhed against her bonds and her scream rised several octaves as her scalp began to bleed profusely.

Not a single doctor came in to check on her as the blood dripped off the table. Angel began to throw herself against the glass. It simply shuddered, refusing to break.

Angeal stood and gripped her shoulders, leading her out the room. "Let's go somewhere quieter. She'll be okay for a few minutes. I can call Zack and tell him to keep watch over her."

Angel nodded. "Please."

Angeal took a few steps away and dialed Zack's number. He hung up after a moment and stood next to Angel. A few miutes later, Zack stepped out of the elevator. "What's the emergency, Ang?"

"I need you to watch over Kitty for a few minutes. We'll be on the roof if you need us."

Zack nodded, stepping inside the room. Angeal and Angel stepped inside the elevator and rode it up to the roof. They walked to the edge of the roof and sat down enjoying the sights of the city.

Angeal looked at Angel. "So, how exactly did you and Kitty meet? If you don't mind me asking."

Angel shrugged. "It's alright. I was a mercenary for a long time. Ever since I moved out of my hometown, I was one. My home was bombed. I learned quickly how to survive on my own. My father trained me how to fight using swords and guns. After the bombing, I moved to other towns and became a mercenary for hire.

"My fame grew in a short amount of time. I killed efficiently and silently. I would always have blood on me, giving me the name 'Bloodied Angel'. I made plenty of money and found myself owning a small apartment. The town was nice enough and didn't question how I earned my money.

"Rumors started spreading about a thief roaming around and stealing food and shiny things. I didn't worry about any thief coming by my place due to my reputation. One day while I was out, the thief decided to stop by my house. I caught her red-handed, but she escaped. I did get a glimpse at her eyes. They glowed in the dark like a cats' eyes.

"I followed her, even through the rain. She didn't hear me following her to her hide away. A coeurl lived with her in a small cave. The girl looked to be barely in her teens. I waited for her and the coeurl to fall asleep. I noticed the coeurl would wrap its tail around her like a mother.

"I quietly snuck in and reached to grab the girl. I only had a small dagger with me at the time. The coeurl growled in its sleep, but didn't wake up as I grabbed the girl. The second I had the girl in my grasp, it awoke and was ready to attack me.

"The girl struggled in my grip until I put the dagger to her neck. She stopped moving, but still shook like a leaf. I told her to return all the food and shiny objects, but she refused to. I pressed the dagger a little harder to her and coeurl was close to attacking, but something told me it wouldn't risk the girl.

"I told the girl to call off the coeurl, but she was too stubborn. The coeurl seemed to understand the situation and laid back down. The girl was nearly in tears as I began to back out of the cave and back to my home. Her pet followed at a slow rate and stayed a good twenty feet away.

"Once we got there, I tied the girl to a chair and questioned her. After a while, she finally gave in and told me her name. 'Katherine,' she said, 'but I go by Kitty.' I called her Kitty and she learned to trust me. I took her in and she helped me with my marks. She was good with computers and hacked into files to learn about my marks.

"I guess we got so good that we gained Shin-Ra's attention. We were told not to say anything, but they actually asked us to join. If I had known about these Mako-injections, I would've reconsindered."

Angel could still see Kitty's writhing form in her head. "Goddess, I wish I could help her with the pain."

Angeal nodded, patting her back softly. "I understand. I had to watch Zack go through the same thing. Only, his skull didn't reshape itself."

Angel let out a small chuckle. "Thanks for listening. I'm sure you've got better things to do than listen to me."

Angeal shook his head. "Just some paperwork. It's not going anywhere, though."

"True. It's getting late. I'm going to check on Kitty before going to bed."

"You want me to join you?"

"I'll be fine. Thank you for being nice even though we just met."

"It's fine. Just knock if you need me. My door's always open to friends."

The elevator dinged and Zack ran out. "Hey! Something's happening to Kitty!"


	4. Chapter 4

Angel had to force herself from taking the stairs again. She jittered as the elevator took the three down. Zack looked at the jittery female. When he told them something was happening to Kitty, Angel was in the elevator, pushing the down button rapidly.

The doors pinged and Angel darted out. Angeal and Zack followd after her, taking long strides to keep up with her. Angel looked through the glass and saw Kitty sitting up in the chair. The arm restraints had snapped and Kitty was working on undoing the leg restraints.

Angel sighed in relief and looked closer at Kitty. She gasped lightly, seeing two cat ears on the top of her head. They were slightly darker than her hair and twitched uncontrollably.

Kitty looked up and tilted her heaed to the side. She stood up slowly, flinching at the cold floor. She walked up to the glass and touched it, mouthing, 'Two-way.'

Angel nodded in understanding. She turned around and asked Angeal, "How do I get her out of there?"

Angeal pointed at the door beside the glass pane. "It's locked."

Angel shrugged, looking at the small lock. "Not a very big lock." She gripped it tightly and pulled it off the door, breaking the lock into pieces.

Kitty saw Angel open the door and squealed happily, attacking her sister in a hug. She clung to Angel like a spider monkey as Angel hugged her back tightly. Angel walked back to the two males, still carrying Kitty.

"Alright, spider monkey, off."

Kitty pouted. "My head hurts, sissy-boo."

Angel sighed, then noticed where Zack's eyes were. Angeal was looking away from Kitty, blushing ever so slightly. Angel then noticed Kitty only wore a small top that covered her breasts only and a pair of tight-fitting shorts.

Angel glared at Zack. "Look away before I gouge out your eyes. Kitty, off so I can cover you up."

Kitty looked down and squeaked, hiding behind Angel. Angel took off her jacket and handed it to Kitty. Kitty slid it on and closed it, covering her small frame. "Okay, I'm decent now. Where are we going to sleep tonight, sissy?"

Zack grinned and slung one arm around Kitty's shoulders. "You can stay with me tonight, Kitty-cat."

Angeal sighed. "Zack, behave yourself. If you lay a finger on her, I'll send you to Sephiroth or Genesis and let them train you."

Zack paled and Kitty looked up at Angeal curiously. "Who's Sephiroth and Genesis?"

"Two friends of mine. They're also First Class. You can meet them tomorrow. Kitty, you wouldn't mind if you stayed the night with Zack until you get your own place, right?"

Kitty looked up at Zack, then at Angel. "Are you okay with it, sissy?"

Said sissy nodded, crossing her arms. "You can stay the night with Zack as long as you two behave. If I hear a peep of anything wrong or perverse, I'm coming after the both of you."

Kitty nodded and hugged Angel before turning to Zack. "Okie dokie, Zackie. We can go now. I'm tired and my body aches from that stuff."

Zack nodded. "I'm actually on the same floor as Ang. Just a few doors down."

Kitty yawned, rubbing her eye tiredly. "Can you carry me?"

Angeal chuckled as Zack bent over in front of her. The cat-eared girl wrapped her arms around his neck and he stood, holding her legs around his waist. "Well, it's late. You two are probably going to be asigned to mentors tomorrow if not within the week. You two go straight to bed after getting something to eat."

Zack gave his mentor a thumbs up and flashed a grin. "We'll be good. How long do you think she'll be out?"

Angel shrugged and pushed the button on the elevator. "She's usually still awake by now. She can sleep for a good twelve hours if no one wakes her. When she's worn out, she'll sleep for days on end. Once, I had to sit with her for a week before she would wake up."

Zack gained a worried look on his face, glancing back at the sleeping girl on his back. "What happened to cause that?"

Angel smiled sadly. "That's for her to tell you. Goodnight, Zack. I'll see you in the morning."

Angeal patted Zack's head affectionately before closing the door to his apartment behind himself. Angel yawned, stretching her arms. "I'll take the couch, Angeal."

He shook his head. "No. You're my guest, so take the bed."

Angel held up a finger. "Before we start arguing over who sleeps where, how about we both take the bed? I won't mind as long as you won't try anything."

Angeal rolled his eyes. "I have my honor to protect, you know. You can borrow one my shirts tonight and we can go shopping some other day, alright?"

Angel nodded and sat down on the large bed. It was very soft and only had a few pillows. She silently noted that he kept his room clean and had a few plants in the corners. Angeal turned around and held out a pair of black shorts and a plain blue shirt.

"They might be a little big, but they'll have to work for now. The restroom's right there in case you need to shower."

Angel nodded, thanking him as she stepped inside the bathroom to change and take a quick shower. She scrubbed the sweat and small amount of blood off of her skin. After showering and drying off, she changed into the large clothes. The shorts hung low on her hips, so she tied the string to tighten them.

She stepped out and saw Angeal was already laying down, facing the opposite way. She thanked him silently for wearing a shirt to bed. She quietly wondered if Zack would do the same.

Zack laid Kitty on his bed slowly as to not wake her. She mumbled quietly in her sleep, reaching out to grab a pillow to cling to. He aww-ed at her cuteness before changing into his night clothes - a pair of loose sweatpants.

He glanced outside his window and looked at the distant thunder clouds before looking back at Kitty. He knew Angeal and Angel would both kill him if even tried anything with Kitty, but did he want to leave her alone during a thunderstorm?

Zack then remembered about an old cat he used to take care of. The old cat would cower and hide during storms. He wondered since Kitty was now part cat if she would cower during storms.

Thunder boomed loudly near the building and Kitty instantly awoke, grabbing onto Zack. She shook as he held onto her. Well, that answered that, he thought. He softly rubbed her back and sat down on the bed. "It's alright, Kitty. I'll protect you. Now, let's go to sleep. Is that okay with you?"

She nodded and stood, shedding Angel's jacket before crawling in bed next to Zack. She buried her face into his chest, wrapping her arms around him as thunder boomed loudly once more. He grinned to himself, wrapping his arms around her and humming a small lullaby his mom use to sing to him. Before long, they were both sound asleep.

~The Next Morning~

Zack didn't expect to find his arms pinned down when he awoke. He looked down and saw that Kitty had wrapped her body around his. Her legs were tangled in his and she had moved her arms so his own were pinned against her body. He wiggled his fingers and immediately stopped, feeling exactly were they were.

He blushed violently and tried to reclaim his arm, but Kitty kept a tight grip on him. Her ears twitched as he blew air on them. She mumbled incoherently before moving closer to him.

Zack felt his ears turn red and looked down at her. "Hey, um, Kitty? You mind waking up?"

She mumbled before her eyes began to flutter open slowly. Her eyes were fogged over from sleep nd she had some dried drool on the corner of her mouth. "Wha'?"

Zack gave her a small smile. "It's time to wake up. Could you let go of my arms?"

Kitty nodded and let go of his arms, slowly stretching on the bed. Her back popped loudly and he winced as she sighed in relief. "That doesn't hurt you?"

She shook her head. "Nope. It feels quite good actually. You wouldn't happen to have any clothes I can borrow, would you?"

Zack scratched the back of his head. "I doubt it. I can call my friend Elena and ask her for something."

Kitty nodded and pulled on Angel's jacket. "Thanks for letting me sleep here. Where's sissy at?"

Zack tugged on his shoes. "With Angeal. Let's get some food first. How do you feel about slightly burnt eggs and toast?"

Kitty giggled. "Cereal is fine. I'm not picky."

"Thanks for the self-confidence."

~Angel and Angeal~

Angel felt a large amount of warmth coming from her pillow. She opened her eyes and saw black cotton. She lifted her head up and saw Angeal had wrapped his arms around her. He was still snoring lightly.

She went to sit up, but he pulled her back down to him. Angel sighed and began poking his side. She felt the hard muscles twitch and began to grin. She wiggled her fingers, digging them into his side slightly.

Angeal yelped and let her go, sitting up quickly. "What the hell? Oh, it's just you."

Angel nodded and stood up, stretching. "I didn't figure you to be ticklish, Angeal. I'll have to remember that. You know, Kitty's pretty ticklish as well. Any light touches and she's done for."

"I'll have to remember that." Angeal copied her.

Angel rolled her eyes at him and blushed pink when her stomach gave a loud growl at her.

"Seems like someone is hungry." Just then Angeal's stomach growled.

Angel grinned at him"You were saying?"

"Shut up."

"Alright. Let's just get something to eat."

~A little while later~

Kitty grabbed the apple off of Zack's plate and bit into it. She muched on it silently, her ears twitching slightly at the noise in the cafeteria. Angel sat down in front of her, a bowl of cereal in her hands.

"What's wrong with you?"Angel asked Kitty.

Kitty put her head on the table. "My head hurts. All this noise is bothering me."

Angel looked around. There weren't many people in the cafeteria and they were all talking pretty quietly. "Nobody's being loud, Kitty. It's pretty quiet."

Zack patted Kitty's back softly. "It'll be alright. How about we go bother Angeal? I'm sure he needs something to eat too." He got up to get a sandwich for his mentor.

Kitty nodded and took another bite of her apple. "Sissy, do you have any pain meds?"

Angel dug around in her pockets before pulling out a small container of pills. "Remember, they make you act funny."

Kitty nodded and took a single pill. She took a swig of water and swallowed it. She made a face and Zack returned shortly. "Okay, let's go visit Angeal."

The girls nodded and tossed their trash. Once they made it out the cafeteria, Kitty began to giggle slightly. Zack gave her a funny look. "What's wrong with her?"

Angel waved her hand at him. "She'll be fine. She only took a pain pill to help her out."

Kitty skipped behind them before coming to a sudden halt. Angel turned around and Kitty yelled out, "SHINY!" before darting off to attack something. Or someone.

Zack saw who Kitty was about to attack and his eyes widened. "No, Kitty! Not Sephiroth!"

It was too late. Kitty had grabbed a handful of his long hair and began rubbing her cheek against it. Sephiroth glared at the girl. "Let go of my hair."

Kitty pouted and gripped her handful of silver hair tighter. "No. It's shiny and I claim shiny things."

Sephiroth turned his glare to Angel and Zack. "Get her off of me before I kill her."

Angel sighed. "Don't kill her. Let me try something." Angel reached behind Sephiroth and began to scratch Kitty behind her ears. Kitty stopped rubbing the hair affectionately and began to purr, leaning into Angel's hand.

Angel slowly led Kitty away from Sephiroth and towards Zack. "Zack," she said to him, "scratch her head like this."

He looked at her curiously before placing his hand on Kitty's head and scratching softly. Kitty's purr escalated and she leaned into his touch. "This is a new one for me."

Angel nodded and turned to Sephiroth. "I'm sorry about Kitty. She likes shiny things."

Sephiroth sighed. "I heard about a girl being enjected with the new serum, but I didn't think I'd meet her so soon. My name is Sephiroth. First Class."

"I'm Angel. You've already met Kitty. I'm First and she's Second. I guess we'll see you later."

Sephiroth nodded and turned on his heel, walking away. Angel turned to Zack and froze in her place. Kitty had attached herself to Zack like a monkey. Zack looked at Angel. "How do I get her off?"

Angel laughed lightly and began walking down the hall. "That's the fun part. She seems to like you already, Zack. You should feel happy about her clinging to you like that."

Zack sighed, his hand still petting her head. Kitty had closed her eyes and was purring ever so calmly against Zack's chest. She eventually said, "Kitty likes Puppy. Puppy is very cute."

Zack blushed slightly and Angel busted out laughing. "That's from the pain meds. She tends to speak her thoughts when she's on them. Don't ask the things I've heard come from her."

Zack nodded and knocked on the office door. Angeal opened it from inside and blinked twice before saying, "She's purring like a cat and attached like a spider monkey."

Angel shrugged. "She's truely part cat now. She tends to attach herself to people anyway. It's nothing to worry about."

Angeal looked down at Zack's hand resting on Kitty's lower back. "You'd better watch that hand, Zack."

Zack gulped, moving his hand slightly higher up on her back. "Here's a sandwich. Got it from the cafeteria."

Angeal took it and sat down behind his desk. "Thanks. I'm glad you three came here, actually. We all have a mission in Wutai."

Zack's eyebrows raised and he jumped up happily, dropping Kitty on the floor. "We're seriously going to Wutai?! Awesome!"

Kitty pouted from her spot on the floor and looked around the room. Her eyes landed on Angeal and she smiled drunkenly. She stood up and walked over to sit on Angeal's lap. Angel felt her eye twitch and she sighed.

Angeal blushed and tried to push the girl off of him. "Kitty, please get off of me."

Kitty shook her head. "Kitty's gotta tell you something. Kitty doesn't like Angeal like sissy does. Sissy thinks Angeal - "

Angel put her hand on Kitty's mouth before she could say anything else and pulled her off of Angeal's lap. Both Angeal and Angel were red in the face. "Okay, Loudmouth, shut up before I beat you. Angeal, why are we coming? We just joined."

Angeal held up two files. "These say that you two are good with fire and sneaking. Don't worry, the mission is in a month, so you two still have time to prepare. Zack, did you ever finish that paperwork I gave to you?"

Zack rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as Angel dragged Kitty out of the room. The two males looked through the open door and saw Kitty running down the hall with Angel not too far behind.

After a few moments, they heard Sephiroth yell out, "Hey! Let go of my hair! It is not for you to play with!"


	5. Chapter 5

~A week later~

President Shinra looked up at the knock on his door. "Yes, come in." Kitty peeked in before walking in behind Angel. He leaned back in the chair. "Ahh, my two favorite girls. Please, sit down."

They both did. Over the course of a week, the girls had made a name for themselves. Especially after one male tried to harm Kitty. The poor guy was in the hospital for several days before he was stablized. Nobody bothered to mess with either of the girls after that.

Angel poked Kitty's side, making her yelp. "Tell him what your idea was."

Kitty nodded and quietly said, "I thought of an easy way for Shin-Ra to make eay money."

The president laced his finger together. "What is it? Speak."

Kitty nods. "We have one of those auctions with the male SOLDIERS. You know, for about a day or so. I hear a few of the Firsts have fanclubs. You'd make a lot of money from them alone."

Shinra nodded slowly, taking it in. "I believe that is a wonderful idea. When and where will be held?"

"I was thinking in the cafeteria. There's a stage in there and it isn't ever used. We can host in three days. That'll give us the time to set it up and buy outfits for ourselves. You just need to send letters to the males they'll need to buy suits, but not too much information about what's going to happen. Can you do that?"

The president chuckled and held out his hand for Kitty to shake. "We have a deal, Kitty."

Kitty and Angel gave each other grins. 'This is going to be too much fun,' the two girls though.

~Day 1~

Shopping

Kitty looked through the racks of the clothing store. Angel stood beside her, looking through a different set of clothes. Kitty picked up a shirt and made a face at it before putting it back. "I can't find anything to wear, sissy."

Angel rolled her eyes and grabbed her phone. "Do you want me to call Genesis? You know he likes shopping."

Kitty slumped down and nodded, her ears flatttening to her head. "Go ahead. I'm stumped."

Angel dialed Genesis' number and called. "Yo, it's me. We need you. We're clothes shopping. I don't care what you're doing. Ger your ass down here." She snapped her phone closed and turned to Kitty. "He's on his way down here."

Kitty nodded. "We're going have too much fun with this, aren't we?"

Angel grinned. "You're the one who thought it up. Damn, he drives fast. Remember, the guy don't need to know anything about it."

Kitty nodded as Genesis walked towards them. He held up a finger to them. "First, this is an aweful store. Get in the car. I'm taking you two to an actual store."

Kitty pouted, but followed him to his red car. "We're low on money, okay?"

Genesis shook his head and started up the car. "It's a wonder you haven't been mugged yet. This is the bad part of the city. And don't worry about money. I'm paying to see you two in nice clothes."

Angel rolled her eyes. "You're so nice to us, Genesis."

He shrugged. "I really don't care what you think. Now, time for some real shopping."

~Day 2~

Decorating

Kitty looked through the music they had in their small arsenal and grinned. Angel was on a ladder, pinning up a sign. Kitty put the cd into the radio and turned the music up.

Angel flinched, hearing the song come on. "Can you turn that down?"

Kitty grinned up at her and straightened out some chairs. "This is Genesis' song. He's gonna shake his ass to it and we're gonna get rich off of it."

Angel sighed, climbing down the ladder. "There, all finished with that. The Turks are gonna bring food and drinks, right?"

Kitty looked at the small list in her hand. "Reno's bringing ten gallons of punch. Rude's making sure he doesn't spike it and he's bringing some sodas. Elena's bringing some chips and dips. And Tseng said he's making a bunch of mini snadwiches. Does that sound right?"

Angel nodded. "Yeah. We are getting paid for this, right?"

Kitty grinned. "We get about ten to twenty percent. If we make about ten thousand, we get at least thirty."

Angel raised an eyebrow. "We all know Genesis is gonna rake in at least five thousand by himself. How many fanclubs does he have?"

"Two."

"We'll get at least thirty percent off his tail alone."

"We're so evil."

"Easy money, is it not?"

"So true."

~Day 3~

Auction day

Kitty smiled and peeked out from behind the large curtain. Her and Angel had spread the word to the fanclubs and they all showed up. All the male Soldiers had dressed up nicely in suits.

Angel tapped her shoulder. "How many's out there?"

Kitty shrugged. "I can't count that high. I saw the president out there. I hope none of the idiots do anything they might regret."

Angel glanced at the time. "We've got about five minutes. You wanna get our guys out the way now?"

Kitty nodded. "Yeah. Lemme go get them. Do I have to give up Shiny?" Shiny was Sephiroth. Kitty gave him the nickname for his shiny hair.

Angel gave her a pointed look. "Yes, you have to give up Shiny. But don't you have money?"

Kitty nodded. "Yeah." She paused for a moment before grinning from ear to ear. "I can buy Shiny for a day and he no choice! I love your thoughts, sissy. I'm gonna go get our boys. Are you going to introduce them or am I?"

"I am. Now, go get them."

Kitty nodded once more before going to find her group of friends. All the men wore nice suits, but some were mssing ties. She found them brooding a corner. Zack looked up and gaped at her. Kitty wore a dark purple dress that was longer in the back before going shorter in the front. The bodice had flowers that started at her right breast and curved around, ending at the right corner. The straps rested on her shoulders. Her hair was curled lightly, but most of it was behind her shoulders.

Kitty giggled. "You're drooling, Puppy. You guys are on first. Follow me."

Zack was shaken out of his stupor by Angeal pulling him up. "Come on, Pup. She's not gonna wait forever."

They all followed Kitty and Angeal had to look away from Angel, blushing slightly. She wore a black dress that hugged her curves nicely. There was a bow and some slight ruffles and a bow on her right hip. The top cut across her chest in a straight line, showing very little cleavage. She also had her hair curled softly and

Genesis tapped Angel's shoulder. "What exactly are we doing here?"

Angel grinned. "You'll see." They watched her go around the curtain and peeked out and saw the amount of people gathered there. Angel tapped on the mike to get everyone to shut up. "Thank you all for coming tonight to Shin-Ra's very first auction."

Genesis raised an eyebrow. "What are we auctioning off?"

Kitty grinned up at him. "Don't do anything you might regret. That's all I'm saying."

Angel held out her left hand. "To start it off will be Angeal Hewley. He's a First Class SOLDIER and very strong."

Kitty shoved Angeal onto the stage and he stumbled, the light shining on him. He lightly glared at Kitty and then turned to Angel. "Fifty bucks!" One female cried out.

Angeal realized they were auctioning the male SOLDIERs and Angel walked behind him. He froze when he felt her hands crawls up his arms. He flexed as an automatic response and another female yelled, "Two hundred!"

Angel whispered to him, "Just go with it. We're making money for Shin-Ra. Plus, better coffee makers." Angeal did like his coffee. He nodded slightly. and Angel backed away from him. Angeal gave a tiny smirk. "Three hundred!"

He slowly shrugged off his coat and slung it over his shoulder. His smirk grew as somebody yelled, "Six hundred!"

He paced from Kitty to Angel a few times and two females started yelling numbers. Once one said, "Two thousand!" the other stopped.

Angel said, "Going once to the woman in black. Going once, going twice, sold! To the woman in black on the third row. Pay in the back and you can have your prize."

Angeal shot her a look, but went to the young lady off the stage. Angel laughed slightly. "Next is SOLDIERS very own Zack Fair the Puppy. He's only Second Class, but he's well known with the ladies."

Zack strutted out to Angel and almost instantly heard, "A hundred!"

He gave them a smirk and tossed off his coat. "Two hundred!" He began to unbutton his shirt and did that wierd pectoral flexing thing. "Seven hundred!"

Zack did one of his infamous squats, being careful not to tear the pants. "Three thousand!" Nobody argued with the woman and Zack went to the pink-wearing woman. He gave her a hug and she happily returned it.

Angel heard faint growling and saw Kitty with her ears flattened back angrily. Angel motioned for Kitty to stand in the crowd and Kitty grinned, her ears perking up.

"Now it's the infamous Silver General, Sephiroth himself."

Sephiroth walked out with his coat already off. "One thousand!"

He gave all the females a teasing smirk before taking his shirt off completely. The girls squealed loudly and one shouted, "Three thousand!"

"Four!"

"Five!"

They slowed at ten, but Angel heard Kitty yell out, "Fifteen thousand!"

Nobody argued with her and Sephiroth felt true fear. He hoped for somebody, _anyone_ , other than Kitty. He knew she loved his hair more than he did himself. The day was not a lucky one for him. Nobody dared to bid against her.

Sephiroth mentally groaned as Kitty did a small victory dance. She happily dragged him to sit down in an empty chair. She sat down in his lap and began to play with his long hair. "You've got no choice, Shiny. We're spending a full twenty-four hours together. I paid for it."

Sephiroth mentally groaned and Zack glared at Sephiroth. Angel rolled her eyes and said, "Next we have First Class Genesis! Ladies, get your napkins ready."

Genesis strutted out, his coat off and shirt completely undone. Kitty hit play on the awating radio and SexyBack began to play. Angel rolled her eyes, facepalming as Genesis began to sway his hips slowly.

"Five thousand!"

He smirked and kicked off his shoes and socks, unbuttoning his pants. He let them sink slightly and rest on his hips. "Ten thousand!"

He shucked off his shirt, spinning it around in the air. "Twenty thousand!"

Genesis began to tug his pants down, but Angel quickly said, "Going once! Going twice! Sold to the woman in red on the fifth row! Close your britches, Genesis, before you lose something down there."

Genesis closed them back up, but left his shirt off. He walked off stage and instantly began flirting with the young woman. Angel began to really get into the auction after a few more men and the cash box begn filling up quickly.

~Later that night~

Kitty grinned as Sephiroth sat down in front of her. She sat on a chair behind him. "Now, hold still, Shiny. I don't want to pull."

Sephiroth grumbled, "You pull and you die. I swear I'm going to kill you for this."

Kitty snicker and began to braid his hair. "Nu-uh. I paid my money so I could torment you for an entire twenty-fours hours. It's only been five. That's about nineteen hours left. I hope you don't mind staying up all night."

Sephiroth sighed. "What did I do to deserve this punishment?"

Angel sat down beside Kitty, counting out money. "Simple amusement for us. Where did Genesis go?"

Kitty shrugged. "I don't know. He ran off with that chick. They're probably going to screw each other in every different position before passing out. How about Angeal?"

"His fangirls kidnapped him. I don't think he'll do anything bad with them, though. Puppy?"

Kitty puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. "He's with that girl. I don't like her already."

Angel rolled her eyes. "That's because you feel threatened by her. If you want to, you should just date him already."

"But what if he rejects me?"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes at Kitty. "Trust me, the pup likes you."

Kitty blushed slightly before glaring up at the two walking towards the trio. The girl in pink was laughing at something Zack said and Kitty fumed. Zack's smile twitched when he saw Kitty with Sephiroth.

"So, Zack, whose your friend?"

The girl gave a soft smile. "My name's Aerith. Pleased to meet you."

Angel smiled slightly. "I'm Angel. This is my sister, Kitty. Here's your half, by the way."

Kitty took the wad of cash and handed it to Sephiroth. "You have pockets. Hold on to it for me, kay?"

Sephiroth took the money. "Do I really have a choice?"

"Nope."

Zack glared slightly. "So, Kitty, why'd you get Sephiroth?"

She smiled up at him. "So I can braid his hair. Would you like to help me?" Zack began to laugh at her reason.

Aerith piped up, "I will. I'll be right back."

When she turned around to grab something, Kitty pounced towards her. Angel wrapped her arms around her legs and Sephiroth grabbed her waist while Zack looked at Kitty curiously. "What are you doing, Kitty?"

Kitty hissed at him, her ears flattening back. Angel slapped the back of her head. "Calm down, you. She feels threatened by Aerith."

"Why?"

Angel raised a brow. "Did you like seeing Kitty with Sephiroth?"

"No."

"Okay then. Think of it like that. She's simply jealous. Now, sit. Down."

Kitty was forced to sit down and started playing with Sephiroth's hair once again. Zack said, "You're just jealous? But she's just a friend. I like you more, Kitty."

Kitty blushed and hid her face in the silver hair. She mumbled something incoherent and Sephiroth sighed. "She says she likes you too. More than a friend."

Kitty glared at Sephiroth. "Mean Shiny. You're not supposed to tell."

Sephiroth shrugged. "Think of it as the beginning of your punishment for braiding my hair."

Aerith returned, carrying some flowers. "Now we can put flowers in his hair!"

Kitty grinned, holding out her hand. "Hand them over. You're going to look so pretty Shiny."

Zack and Angel held back their laughter as the two girls put the flowers in his braided hair. Sephiroth silently fumed, thinking up ways to punish Kitty.


	6. Chapter 6

"Sissy! Shiny's trying to kill me!" Kitty rounded the corner and ran face-chest into Zack. "Oh, hello. Have you seen sissy?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. She said she's going to be with sAngeal."

"Thanks, Pup." She gave him a quick peck on his cheek before running down the hall.

Zack blushed and had a goofy smile on his face as Sephiroth stalked up to him. "Where did she go? I heard her go this way."

Zack pointed down a random hall. "That way."

Sephiroth nodded, his sword in hand. Zack didn't realize he really gave him the right way to Kitty. Speaking of the Puppy, he fell over in a daze with that goofy smile still attached to his face.

Kitty spotted Angeal's office door and grinned, darting inside. She ran over to Angeal and pushed him out the way and sat down underneath the desk. She looked up at the confused male. "Hi."

Angel sighed. "Is Sephiroth going after you?"

Kitty peeked up over the desk. "Yes. Now, you two never saw me. Deal?"

Angeal raised an eyebrow at her. "I don't see how this is a deal, but okay."

The door opened as Angeal scooted back to his desk. Kitty pulled her legs up to her chest, hoping Sephiroth wouldn't find her. She heard Sephiroth say, "Where is she? I don't she ran in here."

Angel calmly said, "I don't know. I haven't seen her all day."

"You're lying. I know she's in here somewhere. Zack told me."

Kitty mentally cursed Zack as Sephiroth's boots came into her view. She shoved Angeal out the way and darted for Angel. She sat herself in Angel's lap and stuck her tongue out at Sephiroth.

Angel rolled her eyes, moving Kitty out her lap. She lifting one of her swords and pointed it at the silver-haired General. "Touch her and die."

Sephiroth sighed. "I can't wait for the two of you to get mentors. When is that going to happen, Angeal?"

"Should happen tomorrow. Just be patient."

"I can't with the evil short one around."

Kitty twitched. "Did you just call me short?"

Angel began to scratch Kitty's head, making her purr and fall over. "Sephiroth, if I were you, I'd leave and never call her short again."

Sephiroth sighed. "I forgot to mention insane."

~A little while later~

Kitty hummed as she put on a little bit of eye shadow. She twirled slightly as she grabbed a dark blue skirt and black top. She grabbed her black boots and slid them on. She pulled her hair into a cute bun before double-checking her reflection.

She stepped out the bathroom and looked at Angel. "How do I look?"

Angel nodded. "You look nice."

"Thank you. When are you and Angeal going to go out?"

Angel rolled her eyes. "Drop the subject before I lock you in a room with your Shiny as you call him."

Kitty pouted. "Fine. I'll leave you alone about it. Now, I've got a date with my Puppy~"

Angel stood and hugged Kitty. "You be good on your date and be back in before ten. If he lays a finger on you and you don't like it, you call me and I'll be there in five seconds flat."

Kitty laughed lightly. "I'll be fine. You know Zack will behave himself."

"I just worry about you. You know that. I'll see you later, sissy."

Angel nodded and patted Kitty's head. "You have fun. Got your knife?"

"I'll have Zack with me. We'll be fine. Later, sissy-boo."

Angel nodded and walked out the room with Kitty following. Zack was sitting on the couch, twiddling his fingers. Angeal sat across from him in the chair. Apparently, Angeal also gave Zack a speech.

Kitty smiled at Zack. "You ready to go?"

He nodded, standing up. He had changed from his usual outfit to a nice pair of pants and black shirt. He kept tugging at the red tie though. "Yeah. See you guys later."

Before the door shut behind them, Kitty quickly said, "Date her, Angeal! She's one of a kind! And likes you too!"

Angel blushed and slammed the door shut. Angeal cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably in the chair. Angel grabbed herself a glass of water, hiding her red cheeks.

Zack pulled Kitty along the streets of Midgar, leading her through the crowds. "Where are you taking me?"

"You know that movie that's been out for a while now? The one you wanted to watch?"

"Yeah. But I thought you hated chick flicks?"

Zack grinned sheepishly. "I do, but I know you would like it from how many times you've mentioned it."

Kitty smiled and hugged his waist tightly. "Thank you. I apologize if I end up crying and curled up in your lap."

Zack wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her close to him. "It'll be perfectly fine with me."

"How about instead of the chick flick, we watch that horror movie? All the chick flicks end the same way."

"That sounds a little better. We'd better hurry before we're late."

Kitty nodded, running after him. Their hands stayed intwined as they paid for their tickets and sat in their seats. They didn't bother getting a drink or popcorn, so they simply took the arm rest and pushed it up so Kitty could scoot closer to Zack.

He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer. Kitty blushed, but thanked the Goddess that Angel and Angeal were still at Shin-Ra.

Not ten minutes later, Kitty was in Zack's lap and hiding in his chest. She felt him twitch slightly as one woman was maimed. She giggled at poked him. "Are you scared, Puppy?"

Zack narrowed his eyes at her. "You're one to talk."

` Kitty grinned. "Don't worry, I'll keep it secret. As long as that hand stays above my hips." Zack grinned, but moved his hand off her bottom. Kitty smiled and patted his head. "Good Puppy."

Zack rolled his eyes, but leaned back in the seat with Kitty clinging to him. They sat like this for the rest of the movie. After the movie they left and saw a large crowd had formed outside.

The two looked at each before making their way through the crowd. Somebody cried out, "Kill it! Kill the fiend!"

Kitty sped up the pace and broke through the crowd. She grinned, seeing the large coeurl growling at two men attempting to wrangle it. Zack came up behind her and saw what she was looking at.

He gulped slightly and pulled Kitty close to him. The coeurl sniffed the air before locking eyes with Kitty and roaring into the air loudly. It's long tendrils began to snap back and forth quickly.

"Kitty, we should probably go away before it attacks."

She shook her head and grinned as the coeurl readied to pounce. Kitty tore herself away from Zack and darted over to the large feline. The coeurl pounced and everybody gasped as it landed on top of her.

Zack was ready to attack until he heard Kitty's laughter. The fiend was licking her face happily and purring as it rubbed it's large head against Kitty.

Kitty slowly stood and hugged the coeurl around its' neck tightly. "This is my mama, Coral."

Everybody looked at each other before dispersing. Zack stared agape at the girl and fiend. He walked over to them slowly and stopped when it started growling at him. He held up his hands in defense.

Kitty frowned at the large cat. "Calm down, Coral. He's very nice."

The coeurl stopped growling, but kept an eye on him. Zack sighed in relief. "So, what are we going to do with her?"

Kitty shrugged, petting Coral. "I don't think she'll leave this time. I guess she'll have to stay with us."

Zack eyes widened. "No way. We don't have enough space for her."

"Where are we going to put her then? I can't just leave her out here in the city. She'll get shot or something."

Zack thought for a moment. They couldn't let the coeurl stay with them, due to her size. She was too big to sneak into the Shin-Ra building safely and would definitly be shot to bits. He thought about the area around Midgar. The nearby plains were wide and expansive. Those could work.

"What about the plains? They're wide and nobody would notice an extra coeurl running around. Plus, you could see her during your free time."

Kitty nodded. "Will that work Coral?" The cat bobbed her head. "Okay then it's settled. Lead the way, Puppy."

He cocked his head to the side. "Alright. We've still got a few hours before the sun sets. You two can, uh, reunite until then."

Kitty smiled up at him. "Thanks. Let's go, Coral. Follow Zack, alright?" The coeurl stood up slightly and Kitty sat down on her back with her legs on one side. Coral stood to her full height - about to Zack's shoulders. "Lead the way, Puppy."

Zack led them through Midgar and out of the city safely. They stopped at a pristine lake and Kitty hopped off Coral. Kitty wrapped her arms around Coral's neck and Coral rested her head on Kitty's shoulder.

"I'll see you later, mama. Whenever I get the chance, I'll visit you, alright?"

The coeurl nodded and gave Kitty a long lick across her face. Kitty laughed and nuzzled her 'mother' once more before turning to Zack. She was about to say something, but Coral pushed her.

Kitty stumbled and Zack wrapped his arms around her. They both fell back onto the grass, laughing slightly. Coral seemed to smile before turning and running off. The fallen pair stopped laughing and looked at each other.

Zack looked at Kitty before leaning up slightly. Kitty met him halfway and their lips met softly. After a few moments, they separated for air. Kitty buried her red cheeks in his shirt.

Zack grinned happily and kissed the top of her head. He sat up with her still attached to him. They sat in silence for a few moments before he curiously asked, "Why did you say she was your mother?"

Kitty smiled sadly. "She found me when I was really tiny. Let's just say that bad things happened to my hometown and I was all alone afterward. She took me in as her own and raised me. I don't think she ever had pups of her own because I never saw any others."

Zack nodded. "Would you tell me about your home?"

"I was barely five at the time it happened. My village was small and we were poor, but very happy. The mayor's wife found me and took me in as her own. She had two daughters who were both older than me. Since they were old enough to take care of themselves, the mayor's wife coddled me. It was actually quite funny.

"The two daughters became jealous of me and liked to bully me when we were alone together. I never told on them, for fear of what they might do to me. One day, they led me out to the nearby forest and dared me to climb a tree. It was maybe only ten feet off the ground, but I didn't like being high up.

"They left me there and I stayed up in the tree even though we had a terrible storm one night. I clung to the branch I was on like a bear trap. One strong wind came through and the branch broke. Nobody heard me scream as I fell. Well, I thought nobody did.

"When I came to, I was face to face with a coeurl. She didn't eat me or harm me. Instead, she grabbed the back of my shirt and carried me away to a cave. She set me down and began to clean the dirt off me. She took care of me like no one else would.

"One day, we both traveled back to the village. Only to find it was completely flattened to the ground. There was nothing but ruins. The night of the thunder storm was when it was bombed. I didn't hear anything because I thought it was thunder. That's why I'm so afraid of thunder storms.

"I became a thief. I was very good at it and if I was ever caught, Coral was there to get me out of trouble. I always had somebody helping me get out of trouble.

By the time she finished, she was in tears. Zack shifted nervously, not knowing what to do. He just held her close to him until her crying stopped. He looked down and saw that she had fallen asleep right there in his arms.

He decided to stay there for a while and watch the sunset. He stood up with Kitty in his arms and sneezed. He groaned slightly, feeling his throat tighten up. Zack was allergic to coeurls and Kitty had fur all over her.


	7. Chapter 7

~~The Next Day~~

Kitty leaned over Angeal's desk, forcing him to stop writing. "Yes, Kitty?"

"You need to hurry up and go out with Sissy. You two obviously like each other and need to go out. Before I forget, Zack's throat is closed up due to allergies, so I decided to be a good girlfriend and fill in for him."

Angeal raised an eyebrow at her. "I thought Zack wasn't allergic to anything."

"Apparently, he's allergic to coeurls. I learned that yesterday night. So, when are you two gonna go out?"

Angeal resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her. He knew that would only get her annoy him some more. "I thought you were being asigned a mentor today."

Kitty looked around for a clock. "Yeah. At about ten. Why am I even up this early?"

Angel stood up from her seat and set the paperwork down. She was nice enough that she helped Angeal out with all the paperwork he always seemed to have. "It's at nine thirty. And we should get going before we're late."

Kitty groaned. "Whoever it is, they should just be happy I show up. I hate waking up this early."

Angel grabbed Kitty's wrist and began to drag her out of the room. "I know you do. See you later, Angeal."

"Good luck, Angel."

"Thanks. If you're good, I'll give you a treat."

Kitty's face lit up and she closed her lips in a zipping motion. "I'll be good. I pinky promise. I'm not running laps or doing push ups, though."

Angel rolled her eyes. "I should've figured you'd say that. Can you behave for at least half an hour?"

"Half an hour equals one Reece's Cup, right?" Angel slowly nodded. "Yay! I'll be good. I hope I get Shiny so I can torment him some more."

Angel sighed. "You don't understand the word 'behave' do you?"

Kitty grinned. "Nope!"

"Should've figured. There they are."

Genesis and Sephiroth stood side by side, leaning on a wall. There were two doors - one beside each of them. Kitty grinned and yelled out, "Shiny! You're my mentor, aren't you?"

Sephiroth groaned slightly. "No way in hell am I being your mentor, shorty. Genesis will be your mentor instead."

Genesis gave the small girl a small. "Pleased to meet you, Kitten."

He reached out to grab her hand, but she darted behind Angel, having never met Genesis before. "Sissy, he's a creeper. Isn't he?"

Genesis nearly faceplanted into the floor. Sephiroth and Angel both chuckled. "No, he's not a total creeper. He's a friend of Angeal and Zacks. He's good."

Kitty gave the red-haired man a second glance. "He is pretty cute. But, I'm with my Puppy."

Genesis rolled his eyes. "Come on, Kitten. Let's see what you're made of."

"I warn you right now, I'm not running or doing physical exercise or going in the room with you alone."

Angel held up an orange wrapper. It's contents were still inside, safe and sound. "Kitty, look." Kitty's eyes widened and Angel tossed the treat into the room where Genesis was waiting. Kitty followed after it quickly.

Sephiroth looked at Angel. "How is it you get her to shut up and listen to you so easily?"

Angel smirked up at him. "It's a secret. You'll have to find out yourself."

~Genesis and Kitty's Training~

Kitty sat on the floor, munching on her treat. Looking around the room, she noticed the lack of exercise equipment and the amount of bars and balance beams. Genesis paced back and forth in front of her.

"Instead of doing actual physical training, we will be working on your balance and form. I need you to change into this."

He held out a leotard to her. Kitty raised an eyebrow at him. "I can take the shawl off, you know." She slipped it off of her, revealing her somewhat tight fitting tank. "See? I'm good. So, what are we doing first?"

Genesis motioned her to follow him to a simple balance beam. It was about three feet off the ground and completely straight. "Get up here first and then I'll tell you what to do." Kitty slowly climbed on top of it and stood up. "Face forward and don't fall off."

She gave him an odd look, but followed his orders. She felt something jab her side and she squeled, turning around to glare at Genesis. He held a metal pole in his hand and was smirking at her.

"I said we were working on your form as well. Now, turn around and straighten your back."

Kitty huffed, turning around. She stood up straight with one foot in front of the other. She felt the metal poke behind her knee and nearly collapsed to a heap. She glared at her mentor even harder. She silently wondered how Angel was faring with Sephiroth.

Feeling the metal once more, she hissed out, "Do it again and I hurt you!"

~Angel and Sephiroth~

Angel grunted as Sephiroth swung his sword at her. She blocked the blade with her own. They were using the standard swords instead of their own.

Sephiroth looked down at her. "You'll have to attack if you ever plan on beating me."

Angel huffed. "I would if you would go a little easier on me."

He shrugged, jumping away from her. Her blocked her attacks easily with the sword. "I don't go easy on anybody. Gender does not matter in a fight."

Angel swept her foot under legs, but he jumped back. She knew it was a dirty trick, but Sephiroth was no easy oppenent. Well, nobody was easy but Sephiroth was on a level of his own.

They charged towards each other and their swords clashing violently. The door opened and their attention was turned towards it. Genesis was standing there, beet red, and he tossed Kitty on the ground beside them.

"I quit. You take her."

Angel sighed as Kitty laughed on the floor. "What did she do?"

"She groped me! She has no sense of self-preservation! Sephiroth, please take her. I'll trade."

Sephiroth shook his head and took a step away from Kitty. Angel turned to Kitty. "What did I say about groping superiors?"

Kitty hummed in thought before snapping her fingers. "To only do it if they bother me?"

Angel slapped her head. "To not do it at all. Now, I'm going to punish you since Genesis is apparently afraid of you. Go to Angeal's office and sit down and help him fill out paperwork. If he needs you to run an errand, go do it and then return to him. Sephiroth will take you there. Now, go."

Kitty's ears flattened, but Angel knew she wasn't truely upset. "But, sissy Zackie-poo is sick and needs me to check on him."

Angel sighed. "No. He's grown up and can take care of himself. Now, to Angeal with you."

Sephiroth stepped out the room and the light flashed off his hair. Kitty's eyes dilated and she grinned, pouncing after her 'Shiny'. Sephiroth crashed to the floor as Kitty landed on him. She gripped his hair tightly and rubbed against it like it was catnip.

He pulled free and began to speedily walk down the halls. Kitty followed after her Shiny, walking slowly and silently. When they walked past a certain hallway, she grinned and slipped away.

After ten minutes, Sephiroth sighed and turned around. He hadn't heard Kitty's 'hunting' in a while and was slightly worried about his health. He saw nothing and looked around before dialing Angeal's number.

Kitty unlocked the door and slid inside. She locked it and turned around, breathing a sigh of relief. She turned around and screamed lightly. Zack was standing in front of her, breathing heavily.

Concern crossed her eyes and she stepped over to him and wrapped her arm around his torso and put his arm over her shoulder. "You should be in bed. Do you need something? I can make you some soup."

Zack shook his head and pointed to the couch. Due to having such bad alergies, his throat tightened up so much he couldn't talk properly - if at all. Kitty slowly led him to the couch and he laid down on it.

Kitty felt his forehead and frowned. "You're still warm. At least your pants are still on."

He gave her a grin. Tried to give her a grin until he went to a coughing fit. Kitty went to their shared bathroom and grabbed a rag to wet it with cool water. She returned and saw that Zack was only laying in his boxers.

She blushed slightly, but ignored it and dabbed the cool water on his chest and neck. She ignored the fact he was shirtless and noticed all the sweat on him. The apartment was already cool, but if it got any colder then they would have to pay extra they didn't exactly have.

Zack raised his hand and gently stroked her cheek; his silent way of saying 'thanks' to her. Kitty smiled and turned her head to gently kiss his palm. "I'm sorry I got you sick."

He shook his head quickly, as if to tell her is wasn't her fault. Kitty smiled sadly at him. "How about I make you some soup out the can? I'll just put it in a bowl and heat it up. I can heat up food if nothing else."

Zack nodded and she went into their kitchen to grab a can of soup. She breathed deeply, as if preparing herself to battle. Battle the microwave, she thought sadly. In every sense, Kitty had no cooking skills. She tried to make toast once and they came out blacker than black.

She carefully opened the can and poured it into a bowl. Kitty slowly placed the bowl in the microwave and turned it on. She watched it with wide eyes and stopped the microwave to pull the bowl out carefully.

She put the bowl on the counter and blew it off slightly. It had stopped bubbbling, but was steaming slightly. She turned around to grab a spoon, but yelped at the loud popping sound behind her.

Zack looked up and his eyes widened. He grunted and pointed at the kitchen. Kitty turned slowly and her mouth fell open. The entire kitchen was covered in soup. Every inch. She felt her eyes swell up and tears fell down her cheeks just as the door opened.

Angeal looked at the mess Kitty had created and his mouth dropped open. "What the hell happened?"

Kitty sobbed and crumpled to the floor. Zack grabbed a piece of paper and handed it to Angeal.

 **This is why Kitty doesn't cook.**

The saddened girl cried out, "i turned around for barely a minute! Why does the world hate me so damn much?! What did I do to deserve this punishment?!"


	8. Chapter 8

Blue eyes shined through the darkness of the Shin-Ra building. The person moved in silence through the black. A door opened and slid shut as the person went into the office. They jumped as the light was turned on.

Angel say beside the light, a pink book in her hand. "I suspected as much, I knew Angeal didn't have that much paperwork himself."

Genesis gulped. He had a large pile of paperwork in his arms, prepared to put it on Angeal's desk. "I thought you'd be sleeping, Angel. What are doing with LOVELESS?"

Angel held the book up and her left hand under the book. Her left hand caught fire and Genesis' eyes widened. "I'll burn the book unless you do _all_ of Angeal's paperwork. You know I will burn this book to a crisp."

He set the papers down and clasped his hands together in a pleading fashion. "I'll do the work. Just don't hurt my baby."

Angel nodded and stood up. She clutched the book and opened the door to leave. "I expect all that work to be completed when I get back. If not, your book is dead."

Genesis glared at her as she left. He grumbled as he sat down and grabbed a pen to write with.

Angel poked Angeal's side. He grumbled and stared up at her. "What is it?"

"You've got a day off today. I caught Genesis putting more paperwork on your desk and I got him doing it."

He sat up and blinked at her. "How'd you do that?"

Angel held up the book in answer. "Since you have the day off, we can go out. That was Kitty can stop bugging us about it.'

Angeal nodded before closing his eyes and rolling back over. "Alright. I'm going back to sleep for a while longer."

Angel shrugged and went to tv.

~Kitty and Zack~

Kitty frowned and rubbed Zack's back as he coughed. She had been up all night cleaning and watching over him. It took about four hours to clean up the soup and another two to get the ceiling. Zack offered to help, but she refused it and used the chairs and counter to clean it.

Zack groaned slightly and Kitty gripped his hand. He tugged her down to his level and rasped out, "Sleep."

Kitty shook her head. "I'm fine. You need your slep more than I do. I can go without sleep for a good amount of time."

Zack shook his head and wrapped his arms around her waist to nuzzle her stomach. Kitty bushed and moved to lay down beside him. She kissed his cheek and buried her face into his neck.

~Date time~

Angeal shifted nervously as Kitty stared him down. He was sitting on the couch in her and Zack's apartment and Angel was getting ready for their date. Kitty stood in front of him, hands on her hips.

"Now, I want my sissy asleep before midnight. She doesn't care for overly sweet things like I do. I expect you to feed her good food and refrain from being too cheap. My sissy deserves to be once in a while. Even if she denies it. Feed her and take her out."

A hand made contact with the back of her head. "Stop patronizing him. You ready to go, Angeal?"

Angel wore a simple black dress with some tights and a pair of knee-high boots. Her hair was half pulled-up. Two barretts with a tiny jewel on each of them held her bangs back. From across the room, Zack let out a (pathetic) whistle and Kitty gave him the stink eye.

Angeal nodded and stood up, holding out his arm. "Let's go before Zack passes out and Kitty kills him."

A moment after they left, Kitty turned to Zack with a dark look on her face. "What the hell was that? Do I need to punish you?"

Zack gulped as she stepped closer to him. Their apartment door slammed open and Genesis stepped in. Genesis looked around and quickly said, "I heard Angeal's gettin' laid tonight. Where is he? I need to give him this." Genesis held up a square package and Zack's jaw dropped.

Kitty walked over to Genesis and held up his book. "You're still in trouble. Get back to work before I burn it." He gulped and turne on his heel. "He's lucky sissy and Angeal weren't here. Sissy'd kill him."

~Date time~

Angeal led Angel to a red car and she recognized it as Genesis's car. Angeal held the door open for her and she sat down. He sat down in the drivers seat and started it, driving off into the city.

"I guess Genesis loaned you his car?"

Angeal smiled cheepishly. "I don't have one and he owed me a favor anyway. I hope Zack and Kitty don't do anything stupid while we're gone."

Angel shrugged. "I'm sure Sephiroth can handle them if he has to. The building should be still be standing when we get back. How much trouble can get in?"

Angeal grumbled, "That's what I'm afraid of. Anyway, I hope you're hungry. This place has really nice food, but their bread rolls are delicious."

Angel laughed slightly. "Don't worry. I had a small lunch. This place looks nice."

Angeal held the door open for her and they walked towards the resturant. It was near the lake and most of it was out in the open. The two were seated quickly and ordered their drink.

They talked and joked, looking through the menu. The waiter returned and handed them their drinks and a bowl of bread rolls. The waiter eyed Angel and smiled flirtatiously at her. "Are you ready to order, pretty lady?"

Angeal glared at him and Angel laughed behind her hand. "Of course. You probably shouldn't be calling me pretty lady in front of my boyfriend. You see he's Angeal Hewley First Class SOLDIER."

The waiter gulped and glanced at the smirking Angeal. "I apologize, Commander. I didn't realize it was you."

Angeal nodded. "It's quite alright. You shouldn't flirt with every female you see. It may hurt your reputation."

The waiter let out a small sigh of relief and took their orders and scurried away. Angel laughed loudly and Angeal chuckled. "That was pretty smart, Angel."

"I know. I think we scared the poor boy to death though."

Angeal shrugged, taking a bite out of a bread roll. "You should try one. Here, just take a bite out of it."

He held it out to her and she blushed slightly, taking a bite out of it. She nodded and he retracted his hand. "This is good."

"Would I lie?"

"True. If you were Kitty asking that, I'd have a different response to that."

"She's another Puppy, that's for sure. We all like her though. Even Sephiroth does, even if he won't admit it out loud."

Angel raised an eyebrow. "Shiny? I highly doubt that."

"He sees her almost as a little sister."

"Blackmail~"

"Why did I tell you that?"

Angel simply grinned.

~After food~

Angel hummed in delight, patting her full stomach. After dinner they had decided to kill some time and take a walk around a carnival. "That was really good food, Angeal. I see why you only go there once in a while; it's expensive as hell. I'm somewhat happy that they didn't let us take leftovers with us."

She leaned against his side, shivering slightly. Angeal noticed and took off his jacket to place it on her shoulders. "Here. I'm not cold."

Angel slipped her arms through the sleeves and felt tiny wearing it. _So this how Kitty feels. I feel so small,_ Angel thought to herself. "Thanks."

"No problem."

"Let's go play some games. After all, isn't that what carnivals are mainly for?"

Angeal shrugged. "I guess. Growing up, I never played much when I was young."

Angel nudged his side with her elbow. "So you saying you're old now?"

Angeal rolled his eyes and gently shoved her shoulder. "You know what I mean. Ring toss or pop balloons?"

Angel looked around and grinned at him. "How about the hammer where you hit the pad?"

"That works too."

They walked over there and Angel paid a dollar and picked up the hammer, shocking the man. Angeal watched as Angel pulled the sledgehammer behind her. She slammed it down and the bell dinged loudly.

Angel turned and grinned. "I would like this winged puppy." Angeal chuckled and stared at the odd creature. It was oddly cute. The puppy was dark blue and had floppy ears and two white wings. Angel held up the stuffed animal. "I shall call him Zack."

Angeal laughed loudly, surprising her. She laughed along with him and grabbed his hand. "Let's go get on the ferris wheel before we head back home. I'm sure Kitty's sitting up waiting for us."

Angeal nodded, still laughing slightly. They sat beside each other and Angel yawned, resting her head on Angeal's shoulder. "The night sky is so pretty."

He nodded, placing his arm around her shoulders. "My mother used to tell me that the stars were people's dreams."

"I heard they were angels watching over us. And falling stars are angels being sent to become a guardian."

He shrugged and the ride slowed to stop once they reached the top. Angel heard a loud screeching noise and opened her eyes to see a firework explode. Several more followed it and Angel 'aww'ed at them. She was mainly focusing on the explosions than the actual colors. *coughpyrocough*

Angeal looked down at Angel and noticed how her eyes lit up at the colorful explosions. He turned back to the fireworks just as 'KISS HER' blew up across the sky.

Angel sighed and quietly said, "Kitty."

Angeal shrugged. "We'd better do as she says." He leaned down and captured her lips with his own. Angel froze for a moment and he pulled away, thinking he had done something wrong. Angel reached up and pulled him back to kiss her again.

They parted for air and they both blushed furiously, tearing away from each other. One last firework blew up, 'FINALLY' across the sky.

They simultaneously said, "Only Kitty," before laughing.

~Later~

Angeal turned the car off and turned to Angel. She was sleeping soundly in the passenger seat, clutching her prize. He walked around the car and lifted her effortlessly into his arms. She mumbled something incoherent.

He rode the elevator to their floor and walked down the floor. He saw a note on the door and read it quietly, _'Angeal, tell sissy that Genesis did his work. I even got him to help you two out on your date. You can thank me later. From Kitty and Puppy.'_

Angeal sighed and pocketed the note. He silently debated on whether to thank the pair or not. He figured they must've gotten bored and decided to help. Even though they could've done it more discreetly rather than using fireworks everybody in the city could see.


	9. Chapter 9

Genesis groaned and nearly screamed in pain as he laid on his back. He slowly stood up and looked in the mirror. His entire back and shoulders were sunburnt. He made his way down stairs, missing the pair of glowing eyes following his movements.

He let out a scream of pain as he fell face-down the steps with a weight pressing into his back. He finally stopped at the bottom and heard giggling before he saw Kitty jump onto the couch near Zack. She wore a plain purple tube top, showing her own red shoulders.

"Haha. Take my top again, Gen-Gen and see what happens."

She laid down on the couch, her head in Angel's lap and her feet in Zack's. Angel shook her head and Genesis slowly made his way to the empty couch to lay across on his stomach, attempting to avoid moving so his back wouldn't touch anything.

Sephiroth poked his around the corner. "Angeal and I are making breakfast right now. Does anybody want anything special?"

Zack and Kitty both said, "Chocolate spread for waffles!"

Sephiroth nodded and retreated back into the kitchen when nobody else answered his question. He told Angeal, who nodded and got out the needed ingredients. Yesterday night before it got too dark, he had made a trip to the store with Angel for more food and drinks.

Angeal cooked diligently. The main reason Sephiroth was still in the kitchen was to get the ingredients Angeal called out. "There's some aloe gel in the fridge. Make sure to get Gen's back good."

Sephiroth's lips twitched and grabbed the green gel. He poured a handful on his hand and walked over to Genesis silently. The red head had his eyes closed and looked like he was sleeping.

Angel grinned, seeing what Sephiroth was doing. Sephiroth slapped Genesis' back harshly, the aloe splattering across his back. Genesis howled in pain as Sephiroth harshly rubbed it onto his back.

What was supposed to be soothing was surprisingly painful. The aloe soothed the stinging sensation slightly, but Sephiroth's harshness was not making it any better for him. Sephiroth stood and wiped the remaining gel onto Genesis' shoulders.

Genesis groaned and Kitty giggled, standing to walk over to him. Kitty turned around and sat down on Genesis' back. Genesis let out an ungodly noise and flailed, attempting to get Kitty off his back.

Kitty laughed as she was lifted up. Angeal chuckled and he carried the laughing girl to the kitchen. "Food's done if anyone's hungry."

He set Kitty down in a chair and Zack bounded in the kitchen to sit down beside her. The table was full of food. Waffles, pancakes, butter, syrup, orange juice, eggs, bacon, grits, everything breakfast related. Kitty and Zack's mouths began watering at the sight.

Angel looked down at Genesis and lightly pressed her bare foot onto his back. He groaned, cursing behind gritted teeth. "Hey, breakfast is done. If you want some, you'd better hurry before Zack and Kitty eat all of it." She turned away from him and walked into the kitchen. "Eat all the bacon and I bite you, Kitty!"

"I'm not gunna eat it all! Zack's eating it!"

"Nu-uh. Don't blame me. Sephiroth took like ten pieces."

"Do you really want to argue with me? The General of Shin-Ra?"

Angeal sighed, rubbing his temples. "How about we all shut up and eat the food? Does that sound like a plan? Good. No arguing."

Genesis slowly picked himself up and sat down across from Kitty and beside Angel. For the first ten minutes, it was relatively calm and peaceful. Zack reached over to grab a piece of Kitty's bacon, but got a fork stabbed into the back of his hand. He recoiled quickly and Angel laughed silently at him.

Zack glared lightly at her. "What are you laughing at?"

"Don't mess with a girls' bacon. I got a knife, so don't even think about touching mine. I am not afraid to stab you over a slice of bacon."

Kitty giggled and grabbed a spoon to put some chocolate spread on her waffle. Soon, it was coated in the chocolate deliciousness. Genesis rolled his eyes at her. "That cannot be healthy for you."

Kitty glared at him and grabbed a spoonful of grits. She waited until he wasn't looking before flicking the grits at him. They landed in his hair and Kitty immediately looked down at her plate, hiding her grin.

Genesis glared at her and lifted up a spoonful of melted butter. "Genesis." Angeal said warningly. Genesis ignored him and Angel kicked his leg, making his aim go towards Zack. It landed on Zack's face, splattering.

Zack looked up at Genesis quickly. "This. Is. War!"

And thus, the beginning of a food fight that nobody won. While everybody threw food at each other, Sephiroth and Angeal calmly ate their food, ignoring the fight. Some chocolate landed in Sephiroth's hair and he glared at the three in mid-throw. Angel watched the food fight from the living, having left once they started.

He stood and said, "You four have clean up duty. Angeal, do not help them. You may go out with Angel if you wish. I will stay here and make sure they do not make a bigger mess."

Angeal simply nodded, wiped his mouth clean, and left to take Angel out on a date. Sephiroth turned to Kitty, Genesis, and Zack. "You three will clean while I supervise. There will be no playing around or stalling. Genesis, you clean the ceiling. Kitty, you get the dishes and table. Zack, you get the floor. If one of you finishes, you will help the other. I will say when it is clean. Now, start cleaning."

Kitty pouted and began clearing off the table. Genesis wiped off a chair and wet a cloth, beginning to clean the ceiling. Zack grudgingly found a broom and began sweeping the floors. Sephiroth nodded, grabbing a clean chair and moved it to sit in the doorway between the kitchen and living room.

Angel grinned and ran upstairs with Angeal after her. She sqealed happily as he lifted her up and gently tossing her on the bed, pinning her underneath him. They locked eyes and Angeal leaned down to catch her lips in his.

Suddenly, Angel twisted and had Angeal pinned underneath her. Angeal raised an eyebrow and rested his hands behind his head. "What're you gonna do up there?"

Angel thought for a moment, leaning back to sit on his firm stomach. "I think I'll get some clothes and go do a little something with my hair and then we'll go on a date."

Angeal rolled his eyes as she slipped off the bed and began picking out some clothes. Angeal groaned softly and sat up to watch her. "You wanna know something?"

Angel glanced at him in the mirror. "What?"

He stood and hugged her from behind. "I am one lucky guy. We're all lucky to meet two wonderful females as you and your sister. Especially you. You're strong, smart, beautiful, and just flat out wonderful. I'm lucky to have you."

Angel smiled at him and turned in his grasp to face him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him gently. "Why are you saying that like you're going to leave soon?"

Angeal shrugged, a flash of emotion dancing across his eyes. Angel saw it, but chose to ignore it for the moment. "I can't feel like complimenting my wonderful girlfriend?"

She shook her head. "No. You can anytime you feel like it. Go get some nicer clothes on. Nothing too fancy. Alright?"

He nodded and she locked the bathroom door behind her. She rested her forehead against the cool wood and breathed deeply. Something inside her was telling her something was going to happen and it wasn't going to be good.

Shaking the thoughts out of her head, she grabbed the clothes and quickly changed after an even quicker shower. The orange skirt swirled around her feet and the black tank hugged her curves.

Angel stepped out of the bathroom and saw Angeal relaxing on the bed in a dark blue shirt and a pair of jeans. The shirt showed his muscles nicely and if Angeal had less self-control, she would've either drooled or pounced on him.

He sat up and looked at her. "You look nice. Let's go."

Angel nodded and grabbed his hand, pulling him out of the house. They spotted Kitty poking at Genesis' sunburn as he attempted to swat her away with a wet rag. Kitty laughed as Sephiroth glared at her, demanding for her to go back to washing dishes.

The pair walked along the shore for a while, looking at the different seashells. Angel sat down and pulled Angeal down beside her. "Lay down and close your eyes."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Why?"

"Just do it. I wanna try something."

` "Fine."

Angeal laid down and closed his eyes like she had ordered. He felt sand being pushed up against his arms and legs and sighed mentally.

Ten minutes later, Angel was grinning at her 'masterpiece'. Angeal was buried under sand with his head showing. Angeal stared up at her, blinking. "Can you dig me out now?"

"Nope."

Angel turned and began walking away from him. Angeal sighed and slowly sat up, sand falling off of him. He brushed off as much sand as he could and shook out his hair. He tugged at his shirt, attempting to clear off more of the annoying grains.

He fell over when something jumped on his back. Angel laughed and rubbed her hands in his hair, messing it up even further. She laughed, squeling lightly when Angeal turned to pin her down.

"How is it that I always end up on the bottom? I'm not particularly submissive."

Angeal leaned down to nip at her neck. "Maybe it's because you've finally found someone more dominant than you." Angel blushed and shoved him off of her. He laughed as he laid beside her. "Did I make you blush? I'm sorry."

Angel rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, shut it. Let's go get some lunch. I didn't get a chance to eat breakfast."

Angeal stood and held his hand out to her. She took it and stood beside him, still holding his hand. "I think I saw a little sea food place up ahead."

The couple sat down and ordered their food. The waiter flirted a little. Not with Angel. WIth Angeal. Angel just laughed behind her hand at Angeal's blushing.

Angeal glared half-heartedly at her. Angel laughed out loud once he waiter got their orders. She actually began tearing up a little.

Angeal sighed and rubbed his temples. "Calm down. It's not that funny."

"Yeah it is. I gotta tell the others when we get back."

"Please don't. Zack wouldn't let me hear the end of it."

"I know. That's why I'm gonna tell him first."

"You're evil. You know that?"

"Kitty reminds me every other week."

"Just making sure."

~A few hours later cuz writer be lazy~

The pair sat on a bench, watching the sun set over the horizon. "This was nice. We need go to the beach more often."

Angeal nodded, his arm around her shoulders. "We should. Maybe leave the others at Shin-Ra next time. It'll give us a break from them and we won't be reponsible for any damages."

"True. Yeah, next time we get some free time. Head down here and spend some good quality time together."

They sat in relative silence and the moon soon let itself show in the sky. They looked at each other, locking eyes. Leaning in, their lips met in a passionate lip-lock. Angeal pulled Angel onto his lap without breaking apart.

Angeal's hands began roaming and slipped under her shirt, rubbing her sides. Angel's own hands went under the front of his shirt, feeling the taut muscles underneath.

Angeal groaned slightly and shifted uncomfortably. He pulled away and rested his forehead against her. They were both blushing and panting slightly. "Maybe we should stop and head back."

Angel nodded relunctantly. "Alright. Let's just sit here for a few more minutes."

They sat there for a little while longer, just basking in the moon's soft glow. Angeal stood and carried Angel in his arms. She snuggled close to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

They saw a faint glow coming from the living room and some classic music flowing through the air. Angeal opened the door and almost stopped dead in his tracks. Angel stood and stared at the four.

Sephiroth was sitting on the floor, leaning against the couch with a book in hand. Kitty was curled up in his lap, purring softly. Genesis was laying on the floor, one hand gripping Kitty's left hand. Zack was on her other side, his head on Kitty's leg. He gripped Kitty's right hand tightly as he slept.

Sephiroth looked up at them. "It's about time you two got home. After they finished cleaning the kitchen, Kitty demanded that we watch a movie. So, we all sat down and they soon fell asleep."

Angel raised an eyebrow at him. "You couldn't argue, could you?"

Sephiroth smirked lightly and petted Kitty's head. She purred louder and moved her head into his hand. "She is quite... persuasive."

Angel laughed. "We're going to bed if you need anything."

Sephiroth nodded. "Actually, you could get me a pillow. My neck is starting to get cramped and I would hate to move."

Angel nodded and left Angeal shaking his head at Sephiroth. "You just couldn't say no, could you?"

Sephiroth stared up at Angeal, the ghost of a smile dancing on his lips. "As I said, she is quite persuasive."

Angeal chuckled. "Do you want a blanket?"

"I'm fine. These three are warm enough."

~The next day~

Noon

Kitty and Zack both sat with their feet on the back of the couch, hanging upside down. Simultaneously, "I'm bored!"

They had already spent some time on the beach, laying out and tanning some. Genesis had even joined them for a few minutes, but _somebody_ put crabs down his shorts. One had latched itself onto his 'family jewels' and refused to release for about twenty good minutes.

After that, they all retreated back to the house and were relaxing before the trip back home the next day. Sephiroth glanced up at them. "What do you want to do about it?"

The pair looked around and landed on the tv. Kitty happily yelled out, "Let's have a movie night!"

Zack nodded. "We can all sleep in here, too!"

Angel wandered down stairs with Angeal behind her. "What are you two going on about?"

"We're gonna have a movie night! And all sleep in the living room!"

Genesis, having heard her, quickly turned and ran back up the stairs. Angel grabbed his pants leg and pulled it so he fell on his face. "Genesis. How nice of you to offer to get all the pillows and blankets off your bed. I know you claimed the master bedroom, so you surely have the most amount of pillows and blankets."

Genesis grumbled, but went to gather all as many pillows and blankets as he could carry. He fell going down the stairs, but had was cushioned this time. His sunburn had lightened up, but was still pretty bad.

Kitty and Zack rolled off the couch and began laying the blankets and pillows on the floor. They ran out of blankets and ran to get some off of Sephiroth's bed. The General simply watched as they used the blankets for bedding and pillows along the rim, making a nest of sorts.

They had to grab a few more pillows off of their bed, but they had succesfully made a decent sleeping area for them all. "Okay. Go put your jammies on and then grab a snack and drink from the kitchen. We're pulling an all-nighter." Kitty demanded to everyone before darting up stairs to change into some clothes.

~Skip ten minutes later~

Kitty looked at the pile of movies in front of her. "How do we decide which movie goes first?"

Sephiroth held out strips of paper. They were all folded neatly in half and he said, "Pick one. Their numbers are one through six. One goes first and six goes last."

Kitty grabbed a slip of paper and peeked at it, making Angel slap her hand. "No peeking. We open them at the same time."

Kitty pouted but waited patiently until everybody had picked a piece of paper. They all opened and Genesis cursed while Kitty cheered. "I got one! Yay!"

Sephiroth - 2

Angeal - 3

Angel - 4

Zack - 5

Genesis - 6

Kitty grabbed her movie and slid it into the dvd player. The menu screen appeared and Genesis groaned. "Finding Nemo, seriously?"

"Yes, seriously. Now, shut up. I'm going to cry within the first twenty minutes."

Twenty minutes later, Kitty and Zack were clinging to each other, crying hysterically. Genesis rolled his eyes at them. "Will you two shut up with that noise?"

The crying pair glared at Genesis. Zack noticed something and said, "Is that a tear I see, Genesis?"

Genesis huffed and wiped at his eye. "No. I got something in my eye."

Kitty nodded and held out an arm to him. "Get over here and join our tear fest. We won't speak of this moment to anyone."

Genesis grudgingly crawled over to them and wrapped his arms around the crying pair. Before the movie was over, they were all crying and yelling, "Fish are friends not food, Bruce!" Don't eat them! They're friends."

Sephiroth leaned over to Angel. "Would it be okay if I knocked them out? They're starting to get annoying."

Angel laughed, sipping some of her coca-cola. "Nah, they'll be fine. Crying is good for the heart once in a while. At least they haven't congregated to your lap and started to speak whale to you."

She said the last part quietly because if Kitty or Zack had heard her, they would actually start to do that."

Sephiroth sighed and leaned back against the pillows. "You're right on that one. When will this movie end?"

"Give it another half hour. What movie did you pick?"

Sephiroth smirked, making her worry slightly.

Sephiroth's movie

Kitty screamed and latched onto Sephiroth and Zack. She had squeezed herself between the two to avoid watching the movie. Sephiroth had chosen The Shrine and Kitty wanted nothing to do with it.

Sephiroth felt his bloodflow slow and silently decided horror movies were a bad idea with Kitty in the room. Angel snickered from her spot and said, "I told you that you shouldn't have picked out a horror flick."

Sephiroth glared at her.

Angeal's movie

For some odd reason, Genesis had a documentary about plants. So, Angeal had picked it out to watch. Kitty and Zack tried to stay awake by poking Genesis' sunburn but were passed out before the documentary was even halfway over.

Angel yawned and watched as they talked about Banora Whites. Also known as 'dumbapples' becuase they grow at random times throughout the year.

Angel yawned once more and stared at the trees. "They look like arches. They're weird."

Genesis gaped at her. "They are not weird! They are perfectly normal in Banora."

"My bad, prissy-pants."

Angeal laughed at the two as they glared at each other.

Angel's movie

Angel had picked out G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra in hopes of waking Kitty and Zack. Sure enough they had awoken and were grinning at the violence and explosions. They both bounced in their spots and Angel would've joined them, but Angeal had her firmly in his lap.

She did, however, grin every time something blew up and laughed when people got shot. And commenting on where they should've aimed instead.

Zack's movie

The Lion King. The young couple had danced foolishly while singing along to the songs before holding onto each other and crying their eyes out. Then, yelling at Scar and laughing at TImon doing the hula while dressed in drag.

Genesis' movie

Genesis had chosen The Phantom of the Opera. Not ten minutes in, everybody but Genesis was sleeping. No, instead, the sunburnt Commander was dabbing tissues at his tears. He sniffled before blowing into the tissue and grabbing another.

~The next day~

Sephiroth awoke first and looked around. On his left, Kitty had curled between him and Zack. She had a lock of his hair in one hand and the other was circled around Zack's waist. Zack had his arms wrapped around her tightly, nuzzling her neck.

Genesis was sprawled out, snoring loudly. He was at their feet, with Angel's foot shoved up against his face. Angel had her other leg wrapped around Angeal's and Angeal had her in between his arms, preventing her from moving away from him.

Sephiroth tugged his hair free from Kitty's grip and began the slow process of waking every and cleaning up before their trip back home. Everybody was groggy and dragged, but they got everything packed up and changed out of their pajamas.

Genesis claimed the back and laid down with a pillow, falling asleep before they even got on the road. Angeal was still dead tired so Sephiroth drove while Angeal and Angel sat in the middle seats. They had to share a seat so Zack sat in one of the seats. Kitty called shotgun and sat beside Sephiroth, playing with the radio some before falling asleep curled up in the chair.

Sephiroth sighed and reached over to buckle Kitty up. Honestly, he thought, if she didn't have people to look out for her then she'd be dead already. Secretly, he enjoyed having to look out for her. After all, he smirked, he was her Big Brother Shiny.


	10. Chapter 10

Kitty grinned and opened the doors of the Shin-Ra bulding. "I'm home, everyone!"

A chakram flew towards her and she squeaked, ducking. It stuck itself in the wall and Kitty eyed the people in the building. A girl with violet eyes and blue hair down to the small of her back glared at her.

She wore a white zipped up coat with black buckles and blue ribbons hanging off of it. A pair of tight black pants with a pair of boots that stopped at the middle of her shin. Kitty spotted something swaying behind the newcomer and saw that it was a blue and black spotted tail.

Kitty pouted and turned out the door. "Sissy! There's a girl throwing chakrams at me!"

The girl glared at her. "Maybe you shouldn't barge in yelling like an idiot."

Angel stepped inside and calmly looked at the new girl. "What's your name and why are you here?"

The girl shrugged. Angel spotted the two punching daggers strapped to her waist and a second chakram strapped to her back. "I'm Niah Cross. I wanna fight stronger oppenents. And maybe have some strong allies."

Sephiroth looked at Niah. He glanced at Kitty and saw her half-hiding behind Zack. "Where are you from?"

"A monastary if you must know. I trained their for a while and left when I was twelve because I disagreed with their teachings. I was wandering around for a while, looking for some fun. I caught wind of Shin-Ra and figured it would be more profitable. Plus, wandering tends to get lonely."

Sephiroth nodded. "We just returned from a trip, so I will examine your fighting skills tomorrow."

Kitty pouted. "No. I'll fight her later today."

Sephiroth glanced down at her. "Alone? Are you sure?"

Kitty nodded. "I'm sure. And no interference. I can handle myself in a fight."

Angel stared cautiously at her. "Are you sure? The last time you fought alone was training with me. And that was ages ago."

"I'm sure. Let me prove myself, sissy. I'm not that same tiny girl you took care of all those years ago."

Niah smirked. "Aww, is the little kitty-cat's sister afraid of the kitten getting hurt? How sweet."

Angel narrowed her eyes and Kitty hissed at Niah, her ears folding back. "You know what, Kitty? I think you can handle her."

Kitty grinned, her eyes flashing green. "Ten minutes. Somebody show her to the training room. I'm gonna go get ready."

She stalked over to the elevator and angrily pushed the button. Zack jogged behind her and Sephiroth appeared beside her. Once the doors closed, they all heard angry shouting from Kitty.

Niah fake-winced. "Did I upset the kitten?"

Angel wrenched the chakram out of the wall and threw it at Niah. Niah expertley caught it, it spinning around her wrist before she stuck it on her back. Angel growled lowly at Niah. "You are starting on a bad foot already. I hope you know that."

Niah rolled her eyes at Angel. "As if I care. Now, where is this training room at? I wouldn't want to miss it."

Genesis stepped forward when the other two didn't. "Follow me. Genesis Rhapsodos First Class SOLDIER."

Niah grinned and lifted her bag. "Ohh, tough boy. I thought you were a sissy at first."

Genesis breathed deeply, attempting to stay calm and not kill the girl where she stood. "Well, looks can be quite decieving. Now, follow me and stay quiet."

Angeal looked at Angel. She was practically fuming. "Calm down. Niah just seems to be hot-headed. That's all."

Angel glanced up at him. "Hot-headed is Genesis. That girl is... I can't even think of a word for her."

"Detestable?"

"Thank you. If she hurts Kitty too much, I'm stopping them."

"And the rest of us wouldn't? We're a family. We look out for each other." Angeal brought Angel into his arms. "Calm down. Kitty will be fine. She knows her limits. Plus, Genesis has been training her. She'll be fine. I promise."

"You owe me fifty gil every time she gets stabbed. That girl had _punching daggers_ , Angeal."

Angeal winced. He could already feel his pockets getting lighter. "Deal. Now, let's unpack the car since they left us with that duty."

Angel sighed. "Those sneaks. We'd better start. I don't want to miss any of the fight."

Kitty stalked through the halls with Zack and Sephiroth on her heels. She unlocked the door to the apartment and walked in, stripping down to her undies as she went. Zack sighed and shut the door while Sephiroth blinked at her.

She grabbed her original outfit and the holsters with the guns still in them. "Reload these. I don't want a single cartridge empty."

She tossed them and a black case at the two. Sephiroth caught the guns and Zack caught the box. Kitty changed right there in the hallway, shame having been traded for anger.

"That girl is gonna get her ass handed to her. I can take her. I'm not gonna lose and that is for damn sure."

Sephiroth lightly slapped the back of her head. "Language. Help us load these. Zack's having a bit of trouble."

Zack pouted and crossed his arms. "Nu-uh. These bullets are all mixed up, that's all."

Kitty leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Of course, honey. Blame it on the bullets. Someone's at the door."

Zack sighed and stared in shock as somebody knocked on the door. He stood, opening the door. An infantryman stood at the door, his helmet on so nobody could see him. He was quite short, maybe 5'7 at the best.

Zack grinned and pulled the shorter male into a hug. "Cloud! Good to see ya! How were your tests? I know you had some earlier this week."

Cloud nodded and removed his helmet after stepping inside. Kitty glanced up and her eyes landed on the spikey hair. She pounced on him, rubbing her fingers through the soft spikes. "Oh, they're so soft and spikey. I'm Kitty. What's your name?"

The poor teen was redder than a cherry. "Cl-Cloud Strife, ma'am. Pleased to meet you."

He gave an awkward salute and Kitty shook her head. "Call me Kitty and drop the formailites. You gotta meet big brother Shiny!"

"Big brother Shiny?"

Kitty pulled Cloud to his feet and Sephiroth stood, turning to face her. "Every catridge is full. Not a single bullet missing."

Kitty jumped on Sephiroth, latching herself to his side. Sephiroth merely stood still, letting her hug him. Cloud stared in shock at the girl. She had no fear of the General and was openly hugging him. "This is big brother Shiny. His hair is really shiny and soft. That's why I call him Shiny!"

Cloud stood stiff and saluted even stiffer. Sephiroth rolled his eyes and pulled Kitty off of him to hand her over to Zack. She grabbed Zack's shoulders and kissed his lips softly before rubbing her head against his chest.

"At ease, cadet. There's nothing to fear. I do not bite."

Zack grinned at wrapped his free arm around Cloud. "This is Cloud, Seph. He's a good friend of mine. He bumped into me and was a stuttering mess until I told him it was all good. Isn't that right, Cloudy?"

Cloud blushed, hiding his face in his hands. "Don't call me Cloudy."

Kitty glanced at him. "Choco. Short for chocobo. Your new name is Choco."

Zack laughed while Cloud wallowed in misery. Sephiroth smirked. Kitty grinned before looking at the time. "Crap. I've got two minutes to be in the training room. Help me strap these guns on. Don't be shy. I won't bite unless I feel like it."

That did not help Cloud's already fried nerves. Zack laughed and rubbed Cloud's unruly hair. "C'mon, Choco. You're going to watch the fight of your lifetime."

Cloud almost fainted when Kitty stripped her shawl off, showing her skin-tight clothes. Zack nudged him with his elbow. "That's mine, now, you hear? So, stop staring so blantantly. Put your helmet back on or get some sunglasses."

Cloud was certain that Zack would be the death of him.

~Niah vs Kitty~

The two girls stared each other dead in the eye, waiting for the signal to begin. The training room morphed into a room full of mirrors shaped like a maze. Behind the protective glass, Angel stood and watched with wide eyes. Angeal had his arm wrapped around her shoulders, half to hold her back and half for comfort.

Sephiroth stood on her opposite side, keeping one eye firmly placed on Kitty and the other on Niah. Zack bounced with Cloud beside him, who was attempting to stay calm and not freak over being in the same room as The Trinity. Genesis glared at Niah. "I hope Kitty gives her a fireball from me."

Angel nodded. "She probably will. Kitty, if you get hurt out there..."

Her sentence faded off as the gunshot rang out. Kitty dashed behind a wall of mirrors as Niah began to chase after her. Kitty disappeared from sight and Niah looked around her surroundings carefully. A fireball flew at her and she jumped up, barely dodging it due to the size of it.

Niah looked around as she was in the air. She noticed that the room was full of mirrors shaped like a maze. She opened her mouth and let out an aweful scream. All the mirrors shatterd and Kitty held her ears down to block out the noise.

She heard a voice behind her say, "I found you."

Kitty jumped as a chakram was thrown at her. It curved in the air almost like a boomerang and shot itself towards her. Kitty grabbed her staff tightly and air seemingly shot out the bottom of it, proppelling her upwards.

The chakram nicked her ankle, cutting through her boot cleanly. Kitty winced but pointed the end of her staff at Niah. Fireballs shot out in rapid succession, all flying towards Niah.

Niah sliced them with her punching daggers. The fireballs formed a circle around Niah and Niah cursed as the floor beneath her feet began to turn red with heat. She jumped out of the circle as a pillar of flame arose from the circle.

(Genesis grinned proudly. "I taught her that.")

Kitty felt a stabbing feeling in her side and cried out slightly as she saw a chakram digging into her side. She was still in the air, falling towards the ground. Kitty grabbed the chakram's middle and ripped it out.

Blood poured out the wound, but Kitty ignored it for the moment. She stuck her tongue out and licked some of the blood off the weapon before throwing it back at Niah.

Niah did a beautiful flip, catching the chakram around her ankle and at the same time throwing the other chakram at Kitty with her other ankle. Kitty wrapped her shawl around her in a defensive manner and it turned to stone.

Kitty held the stone up and the chakram embedded itself in the stone. Kitty placed the stone under her feet and stood on it and she fell.

(Zack leaned over to Cloud. "She used petrifiy on a piece of clothing without turning herself to stone. So cool!)

Kitty landed and dust flew up with shards of glass mixed in. Kitty squinted, peering through the dust. She heard faint running and unclipped a gun, aiming it at the sound. She shot the gun and heard the bullets bouncing off of metal. She quickly grabbed her staff and used the wind materia fused in it to move the dust out of her way.

Niah saw Kitty and ran at her, punching daggers strapped onto her wrists tightly. She punched at Kitty and Kitty dodged, her staff raised in defense. The staff had some new nicks in it as Kitty dodged.

Kitty jumped backwards and glared at Niah. Niah smirked. "What's wrong? Did I hurt the kitty-cats' magic stick? If you got a problem with it, then fight me without it or the guns."

Kitty kept her eyes locked on Niah as the guns fell off of her form. She set the staff down and held her fists up. "I'm not afraid of you."

Niah grinned. "Good. That'd be too easy."

The girls ran at each other and Kitty ducked as the shorter female swung. Kitty jabbed her diagphram, knocking the breath from Niah momentarily.

Niah dropped her elbow on the Kitty's neck and Kitty fell down. She made to punch Kitty, but Kitty twisted around on her stomach, sweeping her legs under Niah's feet.

(Angel watched with wide eyes, pressed up against the glass.)

Niah jumped back and Kitty stood. Some shards of glass were stuck in Kitty's stomach now and the small wounds bled slightly, but Kitty ignored her wounds. Kitty noticed Niah shift onto her left leg, taking pressure off of her right. Kitty eyed Niah's right leg and saw that it had some second degree burns on it.

"Seems like you're not so invincible as you think."

Niah scoffed. "These burns are nothing. How about that wound in your side? I hope it still stings."

Kitty grinned and stuck her finger into the wound. She removed it and stuck the bloodied wound into her mouth, sucking off the blood. "This is nothing compared to my very first fight against Zack and Angeal with Angel."

Niah smirked. "You're one sadistic cat, you know that?"

Kitty shrugged. "I've been told. Now, are we gonna play or talk?"

"Let's play."

Niah stripped off her coat, showing her black tank-top. Sure enough, a blue and black spotted tail swished as she walked. Both girls grinned before running at each other, fists raised high.

(Cloud blushed and Zack nudged him with his elbow. "See something you like?" Cloud elbowed his friend in his side, blushing furiously.)

Kitty flipped and stood on her hands, kicking Niah's collarbone. Niah gasped as she felt something crack and grabbed Kitty's leg. She threw the girl over her shoulder, making her head put a hole in the floor.

Kitty laid on the floor, dazed. Niah unclasped her daggers and returned them to her hips. Niah knelt down and grabbed the front of Kitty's shirt. She began to punch Kitty repeatedly. Kitty flinched at each punch, but did not cry out.

After the fifth punch, Kitty grabbed Niah's wrist. Kitty grabbed her other hand and squeezed it tightly, making Niah wince. Kitty's eyes were completely blackened by her pupils and she was grinning almost evily.

(Angel's eyes widened and she ran out of the room, dodging the arms trying to stop her.)

Kitty threw Niah into the air and jumped up, punching and kicking like no tomorrow. Niah covered her face and torso with her arms, curling up in a protective ball. Kitty's mouth opened wide, showing four sharp canines.

She latched her mouth onto Niah's neck and ripped out a chunk of flesh. Niah screamed and shoved Kitty away from her. Niah grabbed her two punching daggers and threw them at Kitty as she fell to the ground.

One peirced Kitty's shoulder and the other cut into her side. Kitty began laughing hystericaly and crying at the same time as she hit the floor. Niah fell and crawled over to Kitty. She wrenched her weapons out of Kitty and raised one above her head, ready for the finishing blow.

Kitty laughed/cried as the doors opened and somebody grabbed Niah's wrists, pulling the weapons out of her hands. Angel hovered over Kitty and pulled a potion out of her coat pocket. She lifted Kitty into a half-sitting position and put the bottle against Kitty's lips.

Kitty drank the potion quickly and her wounds slowly began to heal. "Another."

Angel nodded and tossed the empty bottle aside to grab another. A hand held out a potion. "Give her this. It will put her to sleep, but she will heal faster."

Angel took it and helped Kitty drink the next potion. The bleeding stopped and Kitty closed her eyes, ready for sleep. "Sissy? Did I win?"

Angel lightly slapped her sister before leaning down to kiss her cheek. "Sorry, you lost. But, you did kick Niah's ass. If that makes you feel any better."

Kitty smiled and leaned against Angel. "I'm tired, sissy."

"Sleep. I'll be right here."

Angel felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Angeal. "She'll be fine."

Angel nodded. "I know. I just worry. She's my little sister."

"She's part of our dysfunctional family."

They heard laughter and saw Niah with Sephiroth holding her hands above her head. "How sweet. Honestly. I'm secretly jealous. Lack of family and all. She put up a good fight. She would've beaten me if I wasn't so careful."

Sephiroth glared at her. "Stop talking. I should kill you for almost killing Kitty, but Kitty would chew me out for killing the third female SOLDIER. First class. Cloud will lead you to the president and he will assign you an apartment."

Cloud stepped forward and, still blushing, held out his hand to help Niah up. "I'm Cloud Strife. Nice to meet you."

Niah smiled up at him, taking his hand. "Niah Cross. You're pretty cute. Let's go out some time." Cloud's blush reached his ears, turning his entire face blood red. He stuttered as Niah wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Shut up. I just need a little help walking. My leg is burnt."

Cloud nodded as they walked out. "I have a potion in my room if you need one. Over in the barracks, I mean."

Niah smirked. "Taking me to your bedroom already? Isn't that more second or third date stuff?"

Niah laughed as Cloud darkened even further. Zack ran in, glared at Niah for a moment, before stopping at Kitty's side. "How is she?"

Angel nodded hopefully. "She's fine. Just a little bruised up right now."

Zack let out a sigh of relief, taking one of Kitty's hands and bringing it to his lips. "I was so worried."

"We all were. Kitty's tougher than she looks. I guess I've just been holding her back from her true potential." Angel stared sadly at Kitty's bruised face. The bruises were slowly fading away from the affects of the potion, but they were still quite prominant and stuck out on her pale complexion.

Zack shook his head at her. "No. You're just overly careful. You want her to fight and get stronger, but at the same time you want to hide her away from the world so she doesn't get hurt. Angeal was the same way when we were first paired up."

Angel nodded, staring at him in shock. "Who are you and what did you do with Zack the Puppy? The Zack I know would never sound so smart and intelligent."

They laughed and Zack pouted. Genesis stormed in, grabbed Angeal and sephiroth's collars and began pulling them out of the room. "I need to let out anger. The Thirds aren't working at the moment."

Angeal kissed Angel quickly and Sephiroth patted Kitty's head before letting Genesis pull them out and into a different training room. Zack and Angel stared at them as they left. "I guess Genesis was more worried than he was letting on."

Zack shrugged and stood up. Angel stood with Kitty in her arms. "You want me to carry her?"

"She's nothing to me. You can grab her staff and guns though. That thing has mastered materia infused in it. We don't want to risk losing it."

He quickly retrieved the fallen weapons before jogging to catch up with

Zack stared at the staff in his hands as they began walking towards his apartment. Even after being in SOLDIER for almost an entire 2 months, the girls had yet to get their own. Probably because they enjoyed sharing with Zack and Angeal too much.

He examined the staff carefully. It was about three feet long and the top was artfully shaped like a rose bud. He saw the faint glow of materia and counted them. He ended at 10. Ten mastered materia in one staff. How the hell Kitty had done that, he may never know.

Angel saw Zack's shocked face and grinned at him. "She has more materia locked away. The brown one is a summon of ours, Titan. He's a bit slow, but he's very powerful at defense and healing. The first blue one is a Cure. The second is for curing satus effects alone. The purple one in the middle is used to enhance them without draining all of Kitty's stamina. The red is used for her fire. The lighter blue is used for ice. The yellow is for thunder. The black and red one is comet. Do not ask her to use that one in a contained area. It's highly destructive. The yellowish-green is Shield"

"What about this one? It looks almost black."

A dark look crossed over Angel's face and she stared down at Kitty. "That one is a last resort. Kitty made it herself. It's a last-ditch effort in case she's ever in a tight squeeze and needs help but can't get it. It looks like a pill, but is far more dangerous than any pill. It gives enough energy for an army and makes any pain completely disappear. Much like adreniline does to you."

Zack stared at her curiously. "What makes it so dangerous?"

"It puts her in a state where if she got shot through the chest, she wouldn't feel a thing. She would ignore the wound and bleed out before it wears off and never realize what has happened to her. Any wound she sustains while under the effects of the drug bleed heavier and more. A paper cut becomes much more deadly than it should."

A worried look crossed his face and he rested his hand on her shoulder. "How do you know this?"

"Because she had to use it once. I was wounded and couldn't defend her. Being a mercenary had more cons than pros. I had a whole lot of enemies and they all came at me at once. Kitty's coeurl helped as much as she could before retreating. I watched Kitty swallow the pill and she became nearly unstoppable. Until a stray bullet met its' mark in her calf. She almost died from it and I made her swear to never take the pill again."

Zack stared worriedly at Kitty. No wonder Angel was so protective of her. Angel almost lost her family. "Damn. Why doesn't she destroy it then?"

"Because if someone were to get their hands on the smallest grain of it, they could mass produce the pills. As I said, it should only be used for a last resort."

Zack nodded and unlocked the door and Angel carried Kitty to the bedroom. She shut the door behind her, leaving Kitty in darkness. "I understand what you mean, I guess. I'm curious, how exactly does this staff work?"

Angel raised an eyebrow and took it from his hands. She blew on the rose bud and it opened, the ten materia on its' petals. Zack could see the pill. Even in the bright lights, it had a dark glow around it. "Kitty had it made special. I don't quite understand how it works, but I don't question it."

The rose closed up and the materia fell back into their places. Zack stared in awe and gently grabbed the staff after setting the guns down on the cofffee table. He blew on it, but it stayed sealed. Angel laughed and patted his shoulder as she left the room. "That's something I don't question either. It only opens to me and Kitty."

Zack glared at the staff as Angel left the apartment. He sighed and put it in the hallway closet, beside his sword. He sat down on the couch and began the process of emptying the guns.

~elsewhere`

Niah unlocked the door to her apartment and pulled Cloud inside. She shoved him up against the locked door and pressed her lips to his.

Cloud's hands flailed as Niah wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He squeaked and Niah pulled away. "You're moving in with me, squeaky."

Cloud went limp in her grip and she sighed, letting the unconscious boy fall to the ground. She was actually waiting for him to pass out with all that blushing he did.


	11. Chapter 11

Kitty grinned, stalking her prey through the halls. She followed her prey silently. People that passed by ignored her, already used to her antics. Kitty had been stalking for the past hour, waiting for the perfect moment. Finally, it arrived. The hallway was empty and she snuck up, about to pounce.

She pounced, laughing as she was flipped onto her back. Genesis sighed. "You need to practice silence or you will never win."

She pouted, standing up. Her and Genesis had been playing some odd game of 'Cat and Mouse'. Genesis called it training. Kitty called it playing a game.

"Well, you're always expecting me to pounce. I need someone who won't expect me." She thought for a moment and her phone rang out. She answered it, "Whaaa? I'm thinking."

Genesis rolled his eyes. "Meet me back in the training room in ten."

She waved him off and walked towards the elevator. "What do ya need, sissy?"

"For you to get your ass to Angeal's office."

"Okay, but Gen-Gen said to meet him in ten minnutes."

"He'll forgive you. Now, hurry up."

"Fine, fine."

Kitty hung up and slid into the elevator, smiling at Reno. "Hey, Reno. What's up?"

He grinned at her and gave her a quick hug. "Nothing much. Turk stuff. How ya been? I haven't seen you since the auction."

Kitty pouted as he ruffled her hair. "Stop messing up the hair. I've been good. Zack's been good, too."

"I heard what happened at the marketplace a while back with you and Aerith."

"I was merely staking my claim. We need to hang out some time."

Reno smirked down at her. "Have you heard about what's going on in two days?"

"No. What?"

"Shin-Ra is hosting a gala. Just a rumor I heard. You didn't hear it from me, though."

"I heard nothing, I'll see you later, Cherry-Top."

Reno groaned at the nickname. "See ya, Kat."

She stuck her tongue out at him as she left, walking backwards before bumping into someone and falling over. Kitty groaned and looked up at the person.

"I'm sorry for bumping into you. I should've been paying more attention."

The helmeted male shook his head at her. "It's alright. I'm Kunsel. You're Kitty, right?"

Kitty nodded and stood. "Yeah. Nice to meet you."

He grinned at her. "Zack likes to show me pictures of you when we're in the middle of class. Do not ask me how pictures he has of you on his phone. I will say you are adorable when sleeping though."

Kitty blushed. "Well, nice to meet you. I've got to meet up with Angel. Hope to see you around."

Kunsel grin widened, a faint blush peppering his cheeks, "You should sign up for classes. I have a feeling you'd be brilliant in Tactics."

Kitty's blush darkened. "I might think about it. See you, Kunsel."

"See you, Kitty."

Kitty skipped the rest of the way, happy she had made a new friend. She bumped into another person and opened her eyes to see Niah. "How's your neck?"

Niah grinned, poking at the bandage. "It's better. The bandage is just for looks. You fight pretty good, you know that?"

Kitty looked sheepish. "You put up a good fight. You wanna hang out some time? There's a gala going on in two days. We can go shopping together. Make the boys jaws drop."

Niah smiled at Kitty. "I like the way you think. I'm guessing you were called to Angeal's office, too."

"Yeah. How did you know what floor it was on?"

"Cloud made out a map. It's simple enough once you figure it out."

Kitty opened Angeal's door and stopped in her tracks. Niah stepped around her and whistled at the sight. Angel was sitting on Angeal's desk, Angeal standing between her legs. They were groping each other, but still clothed.

Angel tore herself away and Angeal looked away, stepping away from Angel. He sat down, attempting to recover some shred of dignity.

Kitty raised an eyebrow. "Angel. What have I told you? Marriage. Then you can screw each other's brains out."

Angel glared at Kitty. Niah laughed and leaned over to Kitty and say, "Maybe they're just too impatient to wait for marriage."

Kitty laughed and Angel sighed, rubbing her temples. "I see you two are getting along now."

Niah and Kitty looked at each other for a moment. They both nodded and Niah said, "Yeah. We're cool now. No worries. So, what did you call us for? Though I didn't mind the show."

Angel looked at the two and sat down on the couch. Kitty waltzed over and sat down in her lap sideways. "I was thinking we should get to know each other a little more. Maybe have a slumber party of sorts."

Kitty grinned and looked at Niah. "We can do it at your place since you live alone! Can we? Can we?"

Niah shrugged. "I don't mind. Cloud can hang out with Zack. We can be SOLDIERs very first female Trinity."

Kitty grinned. "Oh! Did you hear about that gala coming up in two days?"

Niah shook her head. "No, I didn't. I guess we'll have to go dress shopping."

Angel groaned to herself while Angeal began imagining her in a dress.

Kitty stood and clasped her hands together. "Let's do it now and get Niah some food for her apartment. And maybe rent a movie or two."

The other two nodded. Niah calmly said, "Sounds good to me. Let's go ahead before any of the stores close for the night."

Kitty slapped her cheeks lightly, as if remembering something. "I gotta ask Angeal something. You two go ahead without me. I'll find you."

Angel nodded and followed Niah out. Angeal raised an eyebrow at Kitty. "What is it you need?"

She rocked back and forth on her heels. "I was wondering how I would go about signing up to take some classes."

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the hardwood desk. "Why are you asking?"

Kitty began playing with her hair. "Well, I'm not exactly smart. Everything I've learned was from Angel teaching me and learning by myself. I wanna be smarter so I can help out more. And, I was hoping if you could teach me to read a little better. I can write some, but reading pisses me off. I know a few words, but that's it."

Angeal stared at her in shock before smiling lightly. "I bet if you asked Sephiroth to teach you how to read and write, he'd be more than happy to. Here's a form to take classes. Just fill it out and hand it to Genesis to sign at the bottom."

Kitty took the form and folded it up tightly, shoving it in her pocket. "Thank you, Papa Angeal. I'll see you later."

She hugged him quickly before leaving the office, shutting the door behind her. Angeal sighed sadly as she left. He had assumed she could read and write like everyone else, but began to think back. He had never once seen her write or read a book since he's known her. The only time she had to read something was the movie title when they went to the beach.

He sighed, resting his cheek in his palm. "Kitty," he said quietly, "why didn't you tell us these things earlier?" He thought for a moment before deciding she must've been embarrased by not being able to read and write very well.

Kitty grinned as she stalked Angel and Niah. The two were talking about something and Kitty caught the words 'weapons... better... blades... guns... sharper'

Kitty waited until Niah turned around to look at something and then jumped on Angel. Angel sighed, already knowing Kitty would jump on her. Angel stood stiff and Kitty gripped her shoulders, wrapping her legs around Angel's waist tightly.

"So? Where we going shopping at?"

Angel thought for a moment. "How does the mall sound? The Shin-Ra mall."

Niah's eyebrows shot up. "Shin-Ra has a mall? Seriously?"

Angel nodded. "Yeah. It's practically next door. Only people within Shin-Ra can enter. Plus, SOlDIERS get a discount on everything there."

"How do you know about this place?"

"Genesis showed us when we had an auction. How much money did we earn?"

Kitty thought on her fingers for a moment. "About ten thousand maybe. Plus, I got to braid Big Brother Shiny's hair."

Niah followed them out the building. She gave Kitty an odd look. "Who's Shiny?"

"Oh, he's Sephiroth. He's my big brother. He's the one that grabbed your wrists to stop you. Uncle Gen-Gen is Genesis. He's the red head with a temper. Papa Angeal and Mama Angel. You obviously know them. Zack The Puppy is my boyfriend. And you're my sister Ni-Ni! And Choco is your boyfriend. Zack and Choco are also part of the family."

Niah blinked. "Sister Ni-Ni? What the hell is wrong with you?" Kity laughed loudly, almost falling off of Angel's back. "Okay, then. What's _not_ wrong with you?"

Angel shrugged and set Kitty back onto her feet. "Okay, you two. We're here."

Sure enough, the mall was practically next door. The building was huge and two guards stood at the front entrance. Looking around some more, Niah spotted the barrels of sniper rifles on the roof. At least two on every corner.

"Damn. Think this place is fortified enough?"

Angel laughed and pulled a card out of her pocket. Kitty followed suit and walked over to Niah, showing her the card. "The president should have given you one of these. It's the only way they'll let you in."

Niah patted her pockets, fishing out her wallet. She pulled it out and Kitty saw the shiny sticker on the back. Kitty's eyes widened and her arm snapped out, grabbing the wallet. Niah glared at her and held out her hand. "Give it back."

Kitty hissed at Niah and Angel sighed. "You can slep her head if you want. She's hardheaded. And attracted to shiny things."

Niah rolled her eyes and slapped Kitty's head. Kitty was stunned momentarily and Niah grabbed her wallet back and slid her card out, shoving her wallet back into her pocket and away from Kitty's eyes.

Kitty pouted and showed the guards her card. "Y'know, I don't see why I have to be checked. How many people do you see with cat ears?"

The guards did not answer her, but one did chuckle lightly. Niah walked inside and stopped dead in her tracks. The mall was even bigger on the inside. She saw the map and looked at it. A food mart was in the back with about four different types of food. Upstairs was actually a smal grocery store with several other stores around it.

"Damn. This place really does have everything. How long is it open?"

Angel thought for a moment. "I think it's open all day everyday. Hasn't Zack made a run down here before at midnight?"

Kitty sighed. "Sadly, yes. Me and him really do not cook. We have even stolen from Angel's fridge for leftovers."

Angel stared at Kitty in shock. "I knew Angeal wasn't cooking all that food in a week's time. You two owe us."

"I can't cook. Soup exploded on me and it took me all night to clean it."

Niah looked at Kitty in shock. "Soup. You made soup _explode._ How the hell do you do that?"

Kitty stared at her sadly. "I really shouldn't cook. I turned around after heating it up and it exploded. Now, can we go dress shopping? I wanna get this over and head back to the building."

Angel rolled her eyes. "You just want to get back to your Puppy."

"Well, I also have to talk to Sephiroth about something really really important. And I wanna see my Puppy. That's nothing new though."

Angel sighed and Niah stared at the cat-eared girl. "I thought cats and dogs hated each other."

Kitty grinned. "Well, we're awesome like that. We get along quite well, if you catch my drift."

~After Shopping~

Niah stretched, bags of food in her hands. "Well, that took forever."

Kitty shrugged, hers and NIahs' dresses in her hands. "It didn't really take that long. What time is it, sissy?"

Angel glanced at the time on her phone, carrying her own dress. "It's about two. We spent about three hours shopping. It would've taken less time if _some people_ were less indecisive about shoppping."

Niah groaned. "I can't help it. Shopping is not my forte. Let's hurry up and head back so I can put up the food before it gets cold."

Kitty nodded in agreement. "We don't want the ice cream to melt. i wonder what the guys did while we were gone."

Niah laughed lightly. "Maybe your 'Shiny' was basking in the silence. I don't think he gets much of it with you around."

Angel nodded. "And Genesis probably spent his time reading LOVELESS. We need to find him a new book."

Kitty pouted at Niah. "You don't have to be mean about it, Ni-Ni."

Niah sighed. "Are you always going to call me that?"

Kitty grinned. "Uh-huh. I could call you Choco's girl."

"Ni-Ni is fine, Kit."

"That's a new one." Kitty spotted someone in the lobby of the building and shrunk back behind Angel. She hissed quietly at the man from behind Angel.

Angel looked back at Kitty worriedly. "What's wrong with you?" Kitty pointed and Angel's eyes narrowed. "Let's get out of here."

Niah looked up at Angel. "What's up?"

Angel hurried into the elevator, hitting the close button repeatedly. Once it closed, Kitty took a step away from Angel. Angel looked down at Kitty. Her ears were twitching uncontrollably, partially folding back before twisting around slightly.

"I'll explain it, Kitty. Hojo injected Kitty with a type of Mako that gave her her cat ears. It ripped her scalp apart and blood practically poured like a river. It was horrifying just to watch. Since then, we try to actively avoid Hojo."

Niah nodded. "I guess I was lucky then. I was born with my tail. Of course, I was shunned from the village and had to live on my own. I found the monestary when I was six and trained there until I was twelve. I didn't agree with their teachings and left, looking for stronger oppnents and allies. Caught wind of Shin-Ra and here I am."

The three walked towards Niah's apartment and they learned it was nestled inbetween Zack's and Angeal's. Kitty smiled. "This is the perfect place. Right between the boys. RIght, Angel?"

Angel nodded. "Yeah. Let's get everything put up and maybe we could take a short nap."

Kitty yawned and walked inside after Niah. She hung the dresses up in the hall closet before flopping on the couch. "I claim my spot!"

Angel shook her head and grabbed Kitty, lifting her and setting her in the arm chair. "You sleep here. I call couch."

Niah poked her head around the corner. She was putting up the groceries, refusing to let the ice cream melt. "Hey, my home. Not yours. I claim the loveseat. If anyone wants to argue, you can leave."

There was a knocking on the door before it opened. Cloud and Zack stood in the open door. Cloud blushed. "I didn't know you were having company, Niah. We can leave if we'll bother you."

Niah shook her head, smirking at him. "Nah. Bring as many friends as you want. But, you boys will have to leave in a few. We're going to have a sleepover. Unless, of course, you want to join us."

Cloud's cheeks turned red and Zack walked in, picking up Kitty and setting her on his lap. "Hey, Kitty-Cat. I saw you carrying a dress in. Got something special planned?"

Kitty giggled. "No. There's a gala in two days. So, we went ahead and bought dresses.

"Can I have a peek?"

"Nope. You don't get to see it until the gala. Besides, I want to surprise you. And I like seeing you all dressed up."

"You look good yourself. Even if the damned tux is stiffy."

She lightly slapped him. "Don't use your bad words in front of Baby Brother Choco."

"Who?"

Kitty laughed and stood up. She went over and sat in Cloud's lap. Niah glared lightly at her, but simply watched to see what Kitty would do. Kitty hugged Cloud around his neck, proclaiming, "This is Baby Brother Choco. And Sister Ni-Ni."

Niah and Zack both stared in shock before laughing out loud. Cloud blushed and covered his face with his hands. Kitty laughed and kissed his cheek softly. "Don't worry, Choco. If anyone bothers you or even thinks about hurting you, you tell me and I'll tell Big Brother Shiny. If he doesn't do anything about it, I will personally handle the idiots by myself."

Kitty yawned and moved back to sit on Zack's lap. Zack yawned widely and petted her head. "I'm Zack Fair. Nice to meet you, Niah."

Niah nodded and sat down in Cloud's lap. Another knock on the door and Niah yelled out, "It's open!"

Sephiroth opened the door and spotted Kitty in Zack's lap. "That's where you are. We were looking for you."

Genesis barged in and glared down at the nearly asleep girl. "I told you ten minutes. Not three hours. You have no understanding of time. Do you?"

Kitty yawned loudly. "Sowwy, Gen-Gen. How's your sunburn?"

He yawned. For some reason, he was feeling very sleepy all of a sudden. "I'm gonna go lay down..."

Sephiroth nodded and lifted Kitty and Zack in his arms. "Let's go get in the bed. More room."

He carried the two sleeping teens into the bedroom and laid them down. Zack snuggled into Kitty's cleavage, his arms tightly around her waist. Sephiroth laid down beside Kitty and wrapped his arms around both of the teens. He dozed off, thinking about one thing 'Family'.

Angeal stepped inside the open door an shut it behind him. He yawned and saw Angel on the couch. He sat down, pulling her into his lap. He didn't realize he was in the wrong apartment because they all looked alike expect for some different decorations.

He quickly fell asleep, Angel held tightly in his arms.

~When they awoke~

Kitty opened her eyes and stretched. She felt an odd softness against her and looked down, seeing two females sleeping against a firm chest. One of the females had spikey black hair and the other had long silver hair.

She closed her eyes before screaming and shooting out the bed, groping herself. The silver-haired female shot up, green cat-like eyes looking around. "Who are you and what have you done with Kitty?"

Kitty panted, still busy groping herself. "I'm a guy! Big Brother Shiny, it's Kitty!"

Sephiroth blinked and looked down. His clothes seemed smaller somehow and he had two decently sized female breasts. "I have female breasts. And I believe I am shorter and you are taller."

Kitty huffed. "These pants are really tight on my new parts. How do I make it stop, Shiny?"

Sephiroth blushed lightly. "Why is my face burning? This is entirely wrong."

Kitty nudged Zack's leg. "Puppy. Wake up. It's an emergency."

Zack shot up. "What's wrong? You're not Kitty."

Kitty nodded. "I'm a dude and you're a chick now. I think we swapped genders. Can we trade pants? Mine are really tight and uncomfortable."

Zack blinked. (S)he raised (her)his hands and groped the two lumps on (her)his chest. (S)he grinned and squeezed them even more. "I have boobies now."

Kitty sighed, rubbing (his)her temples. **(For now on the genders are swapped.)** "Stop groping yourself. Okay, now trade clothes with me. I think you got shorter as well."

Zack pouted, but stood up from the bed. Almost instantly the pants fell off of her much smaller frame. "This isn't even funny, man."

Sephiroth simply stated, "I am going to check on the others," before leaving the bedroom. Kitty and Zack both stripped down. Zack stared at Kitty in shock.

"Dude."

Kitty bushed. "What?"

"You're about eight inches."

Kitty's blush darkened and she slipped on Zack's boxers. "This is much more comfortable. Thanks. Does this make me seme now?"

Zack smirked and suddenly shoved Kitty onto the bed. She was still wearing nothing but her borrowed panties and bra. The bra was a little tight, but needed some adjusting. "No. I'm still seme in this relationship."

Kitty covered his face with his hands. "Why am I always the uke?"

Zack thought for a moment. "Because you're adorable. Female or male."

Zack leaned down and caught Kitty's lips. Kitty returned the kiss, pressing his hips against Zack's like they had done so many times before. They were both hormonal teenagers, but had not had actual intercourse yet.

Zack moaned lowly and said, "We should stop. You're not used to feeling these things."

Kitty panted. "O-Okay. I gotta go use the restroom real quick. You go ahead and see what the others are up to." He darted into the bathroom, leaving Zack laying on the bed.

Zack pulled on the fallen clothes. She stared in the mirror at her new reflection. She was more curvy and less muscular. The clothes fit like a second skin, since Kitty was shorter and smaller. Zack's breasts were slightly larger than Kitty's usual size and so she had more cleavage showing.

She left the room and stared in shock beside Sephiroth. Sure enough, everyone had their genders swapped. Angeal groaned, having quite large breasts. "How do you girls get around so easily? My chest hurts."

Angel shrugged. Since his clothes were already slightly baggy, he had no problem with the change. "I would say that you have either D or double D. Now wonder you hurt so much. I'm usually almost a D. You get used to them after a while. But, first, I want to know who the hell genderswapped us all."

Niah looked at Cloud, who now had breasts and was staring in shock at everyone. "Later on, Cloudy, we're going to go into the bedroom and I'm going to fuck you. Alright?"

Cloud fainted and Niah laughed. Genesis groaned from his spot on the floor. After coming in, he had passed out on the floor and stayed there as he slept.

Now, Genesis was patting her chest almost sadly. "Why am I missing a dick but have no boobs?"

Niah shrugged. "Simple. You're flatchested."

Genesis wailed. "No! I refuse to be flatchested. Angeal, give me your boobs."

Genesis pounced on Angeal, hands groping wildly. Angeal slapped Genesis away from her much larger breasts. "Get off. Now, let's think this through. Where's Kitty at?"

Zack grinned pervertedly. "He's in the bathroom for the moment."

As if on cue, Kitty stepped into the living room. A deep blush was on his cheeks. "Okay, I'm here. What the hell happened to us?"

Niah looked up at Kitty. "I have no clue. But, seven inches baby!"

Kitty grinned. "Eight. Angel? How many inches are you?" Angel glared at Kitty harshly. "Okay. I'll just shut up and leave you alone about that. Who the hell switched our genders though?"

Sephiroth and Angel looked at each other. They simultaneously said, "Hojo."

KItty huffed, the action looking odd in her new body. "I hate him more now. I don't want a dick! I want my boobs! Zack stole mine!"

Zack, who was still groping herself, grinned. "They're so soft and squishy."

Kitty glared at the two lumps of flesh on Zack's chest. Yes, he was jealous of boobs now. Jealous Kitty. "Stop groping them! Whenever we get changed back, you can grope me all you want. In private. Away from Angel. Can I go kill Hojo now?"

Angeal sighed. "No. He's Shin-Ra's most valuable scientist. We can go ask Hollander. He's a doctor too. Pretty good, but not as good as Hojo."

Niah poked Cloud's boobs. "Cloudy has perky little boobs. Nice and firm. Perfect size, too."

Angel held his head down. "Somebody shut her up. Him. Her. Whatever. Just make Niah stop being so blunt."

Kitty crouched down in front of Niah. "Ni-Ni, you can grope Choco later. In fact, you can screw Choco's brains out later. Until then, we've got to stay calm and control these new hormones we have. Personally, I want to be short again with estrogen. Not tall with testosterone. I don't see how you tall people function. I feel so awkward and clumsy."

Sephiroth smirked. "Well, being short has its' advantages as well. You can hide in crowds eaasier and you have more hiding places."

Kitty sighed. "You make everything better, Shiny. I wonder if anyone is genderbent. Lemme text Reno and ask him if anything odd happened. I'll be vague."

Kitty patted his pockets before remembering that he had traded clothes with Zack. Zack was already on the phone, texting away. "I got it, Kitty. Why do you have Reno's number?"

Kitty shrugged. "I honestly have no clue. We're friends, yeah, but that's it. I promise I wouldn't cheat on my Puppy."

Zack nodded. "Good. Because I plan on keeping my Kitty. Reno said that the entire building of Shin-Ra has been genderbent. Including the Turks."

Angel laughed slightly. "Serves them right. Damned Turks. What are we going to do until this wears off?"

They all stared in silence. Niah said, "We could just hang out in here and chill until it wears off."

Angeal shook her head. "I have paperwork to do. Angel, would you come help me? I may have some trouble."

Angel nodded and Genesis simply said, "Be honest, Ang. You're top heavy."

Angeal narrowed her eyes at Genesis. "Shut up. Flatchest, don't you have something to do?"

Genesis shrugged. "I'm gonna go to my own apartment or find someone to do."

"You mean something, right?"

"No. I mean someone."

The three left, leaving the others. Sephiroth turned to Kitty. "I heard you needed to speak with me about something."

Kitty rubbed the back of his head. "Can we go to your office? It's sorta embarrassing."

Sephiroth nodded. Zack kissed Kitty quickly. "You know where I'll be at. See you later, Kitty."

Kitty followed Sephiroth out and Zack winked at Cloud and Niah before leaving. He shut the door behind himself, leaving Cloud and Niah in the dimly lit living room.

Niah turned to Cloud, grinning. Cloud gulped, blushing at the look on Niah's face. Niah's grin widened and he stood, lifting Cloud over his shoulder. He slapped Cloud's ass, making her squeak.

 **(Okay. It's ending here for now. Colby, I will send you the lemon once finished)**


	12. Chapter 12

Niah grinned and nudged Kitty, nodding her head towards Genesis and Sephiroth. "Think we should do it?"

Kitty's own grin widened. "Why shouldn't we do it?"

"Good point."

Before they could race off, two large hands planted themselves on their shoulders. "What are you two planning over here?

They looked up slowly, seeing Angeal staring down at them. They both shrunk down and Kitty quickly said, "We were going to see if Gen-Gen or Shiny would go help us with hair. We've got our dresses for the gala, but no idea how to do hair."

Niah nodded, understanding Kitty's quick thinking. "Yeah. They've got such girlish hair, we decided to ask them to help us with ours."

Angeal shook his head disapprovingly. "I don't believe either of you tricksters. Now, don't you two have somewhere to be?"

The two girls looked at each other, both coming up empty. "What is it, Papa Angeal?"

"You two have a double date with Zack and Cloud. I remember, but you two can't. You should feel ashamed of yourselves."

The two girls were suddenly out of his grip and running out of the building. Angeal heard lightl laughter and turned to see Angel. "Those two are nothing but troublemakers."

Angel nodded. "I know. But, they are quite loveable. A certain Kitty of ours would say so, at least."

Angeal shook his head. "That one is enough trouble on her own. She doesn't need cohorts."

"She does keep Zack busy, though. And Niah spends quite a bit of her time with Cloud. Really and truthfully they don't cause that much trouble."

"They posted the video of the Turks doing the hula on the Shin-Ra website."

"I know. Am I supposed to do anything about it?"

"Nope. It is very funny."

"Why do you think I told them to do it?"

"You are evil."

"I am aware of it. You know you love me though."

"I often question why."

"Shut up. You know you do."

Angeal grinned at her, wrapping his arms around her. "What do you think they were planning?"

Angel raised an eyebrow. "They were planning on making the two kiss by shoving their heads together."

"They don't think things through, do they?"

"Nope. Did Zack and Cloud really have a double date planned?"

"Of course."

~Zack & Kitty and Cloud & Niah~

Zack checked the time. "It's official; they're late."

Cloud looked up at him. "They'll be here shortly. They might've forgotten or gotten diistracted."

Zack sighed, resting his head against the wall. The two had been waiting for about ten minutes, keeping their eyes open for the girls. "Probably distracted. The movie's going to start in a few minutes. I don't want to miss it."

Cloud shook his head. "Me neither. But of they don't show, can we just leave them?"

Zack was interuppted by someone yelling, "Who's leaving who?"

They turned and saw Niah with Kitty, walking towards them quickly. Kitty grinned, waving excitedly. "We got disracted. Sorry, you guys."

Zack sighed and hugged her. "Let's go before we're late."

Niah turned to Cloud. "Late for what?"

Cloud smiled at her. "It's a secret."

Niah rolled her eyes and Kitty laughed.

After the movie, they made their way to a small resturant. Kitty and Niah laughed, clinging to Zack and Cloud to prevent falling over. Kitty stopped to say, "That was hilarious."

Niah nodded. "It was. How many times did she shoot his face in?"

"Not enough. She had another five shots to make sure he was dead."

"It was sad when Rocket sacrificed herself to make sure her sister got out."

"I know. I was almost in tears when she did that. I had a near heart attack when it ended with Baby Doll getting a lobotomy."

"It was so sudden, Cloud jumped a little."

Zack and Cloud smiled at the girls. They had seen _Sucker Punch_ and the girls were talking about it. The theater had been packed, leaving only two seats open. They had no problem sharing, so the girls sat in their laps.

Now, they were heading towards a small resturant before they were going to heading back to the building. Kitty suddenly grabbed Zack's shoulder and tugged him down to her level. "We've been followed since we left the movie."

Zack glanced back and saw three people following them. The four had their eyes trained on them as they followed about twenty yards away. "Think they're with Wutai?"

"I don't know. I've got a plan, though."

Niah discreetly leaned closer. "What is it? Tell us, Kit."

Kitty grinned and began to dig around in her purse. "Let's see what's in my bag of mystery and pain; dagger, throwing knives, gun, some money, phone..." she continued listing off items before yelling out, "Aha! Paintballs and smoke bombs."

Cloud blinked at her list of items. "Why do you have paintballs and smoke bombs? What's the plan?"

Kitty grinned. "I'll tell you after we get seated and our drinks."

So, they simply returned to their conversation and kept one eye on their followers. Once they got to the resturant and seated, they ordered their drinks and Kitty handed them each a paintball and a smoke bomb.

Their drinks came, they ordered food, and Kitty glanced over at their followers. The four were staring at them over their menus. "Okay, take your straw covering thingies and hold onto them for a moment. Don't shred them or crumple them up."

Cloud glanced at Kitty curiously. "Why exactly are we doing this?"

Kitty grinned. "We're gonna make fireworks. When the food comes, take your napkins and wrap them together so they look like awkward potatoes. Use the straw covering thingy to tie them together."

They waited for their food, making simple small talk. Once it came, they took their napkins and tied the items together. Cloud glanced at Kitty. "Now what?"

She shrugged. "We wait for them to make their move. They'll come this way eventually and when they do, you simply pull the pin on the smoke bomb and throw them. The bomb makes a tiny explosion, so the paintball will also explode. They'll be colorful and won't bother us any longer."

Niah blinked at her. "What do you look up in your free time?"

Kitty smiled 'innocently'. "How to make things go boom."

Zack dug into his food, not wanting it to go to waste. The others followed in suit, keeping one eye trained on the four followers. After ten minutes, the followers stood and made their way over to them the glint of metal in their hands.

Kitty yelled out, "Now!" once they were close enough and they threw the paintball/smoke bombs at them. Colorful smoke filled the resturant and painted the followers different colors.

Niah panted slightly as they reached the Shin-Ra building. Right after throwing the items, they had run out. One, ditching their followers and two, skipping out on the bill.

"That was awesome, Kitty. Where did you learn to do that?"

Kitty grinned at Niah. "Shiny shows me which one does what and I simply combine them. He has a notebook full of the combinations that work and which ones don't."

Zack stood up, took a deep breath, and slung his arm around her shoulder. "You are a little demonic genius."

Kitty pouted. "That was mean."

He hugged her to him and started walking into the building. "Don't worry, you're my little demonic genius."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I forgive you. C'mon, Niah, let's go get Angel and we can have our sleepover."

Niah nodded and turned to wave at the two males, her tail swishing. "We'll see you two tomorrow."

Zack and Cloud stared at the two as they left them in the lobby. "Did they just ditch us?"

Zack nodded slowly. "I think they did. Well, I guess you're staying at my place tonight."

Cloud shrugged. "Whatever works. As long as they don't try to put me in a dress again."

Zack sniggered. "I still have that picture."

"Delete it, please."

"Nah, I'm gonna use it as future blackmail."

"You are almost as evil as Kitty. Almost."

"Well, thank you."

~The next morning~

Angel awoke and moved to stretch, but something was wrapped tightly around her arms. Looking down, she saw Niah holding her like a teddy bear and lightly nibbling on her arm. Raising an eybrow, she looked up and saw Kitty had moved so that she was wrapped around Angel's head.

Angel face her an odd look, but slowly pried herself free. Standing up, she flipped open her phone to check the time. Surprising for her, she had slept until noon. Usually, she woke up around eight on her own. She had a missed text and checked it, knowing the other two will sleep for a little while longer.

The text was from the company, making her eyebrows raise. She never got any texts from the company.

 _The Shin-Ra gala will begin at six p.m. tonight. All SOLDIERS not on a mission are required to attend. We hope to see you there._

Angel rolled her eyes and deleted it. So, they had six hours to prepare. That should give them plenty of time to get ready.

Niah began shifting and stretching. "What time is it?"

"Noon. The gala starts at six."

She sat up, suddenly awake. "I don't have a dress! I'm not ready!"

Angel nudged her head with her bare foot. "Yes, you do. We went shopping and got our dresses the day after you came here."

Niah blinked. "Oh, yeah. I remember now. We've got six hours to get ready?"

Angel nodded. "Yup. How are we gonna do our hair? Make up will probably be light for all three of us."

Niah kicked Kitty's side to wake her up. Kitty groaned and kicked back, only to miss. "Wake up, Kit. We've gotta figure out how to do our hair and stuff."

Kitty clutched a pillow closer and said, "We got a while before it starts."

Niah pulled the pillow away from Kitty and hit her with it. "Get up and go steal Zack's computer. I know he has one."

Kitty gave Niah a one eyed glare. "You're a creep. I'll be back in a few." She stood and ignored the fact that she was only in a pair of shorts and a low-hanging tank top. Everyone she passed by stared at her, running into each other.

She knocked on the door twice and it opened. She blinked, seeing a bare chest. "Hi, Angeal."

Angeal sighed and rubbed the towel through his hair, stepping aside. Zack was still sleeping and Cloud was just getting out the shower, wrapping a towel around his waist.

Kitty stopped and stared at Cloud for a moment, nodding. "You've been working out, Choco."

Cloud blushed and darted back into the bathroom. Kitty laughed slightly and leaned down to sit near Zack's head. She rubbed her fingers through his hair and said, "Zack, I need your computer. Where is it?"

He blinked up at her slowly. "It's under the bed. If not, on the shelf in the closet."

Kitty sighed. "I hope it's under the bed. You know I can't reach the shelf."

Angeal shook his head at the two, pulling on a plain white shirt. "You two are something else."

Kitty grinned, skipping to the bedroom. The guys had apparently did the same thing they did and slept on the floor together. She laid on the floor and peered under the bed. Her forehead met the floor and she sighed; it was in the closet.

She peered into the living room, seeing Cloud step out the bathroom with clothes on. "Aww, I was staring, Choco. You're starting to get some nice abs."

He blushed. "I need to gain some weight if I want to move up a class. So, I've been training with Angeal and Zack whenever I get the chance."

Kitty nodded approvingly. "Keep it up. You get some nice abs and lose the bashfulness, you might top Niah one day." His blush darkened and he left her alone. "Anyway, I need one you overly-tall people to reach the computer. It's in the closet."

Angeal nodded and stood. He walked past her and reached up, grabbing the thin laptop. "Here you go, Kitty."

Kitty grinned. "Thank you, Papa. I'll see you guys later tonight."

Zack hopped up, saying, "I need you to sniff something first." Her and Angeal gave him odd looks. Zack shook his head and darted into the bathroom to grab two bottles. "Which cologne should I use?"

Kitty sighed, shaking her head. She leaned over and sniffed each one. "The first one smells horrible. The second less horrible. Just go without them. Alright, see you later."

She left the apartment and walked back to Niah's. Kitty walked right in and sat down beside Niah. "Where's sissy?"

Niah answered, "She's in the shower."

"Okie dokie. Choco's getting some abs on him."

Niah raised an eyebrow. "You been checking out my Chocobo? That's okay since I noticed Zack has a nice ass."

Kitty blinked at Niah and for a moment Niah thought she was going to pounce. Then, Kitty smiled. "He does. Most the guys have nice asses. Have you noticed that?"

"They do. Except Genesis; he has a woman's ass."

Kitty nodded slowly. "He does, doesn't he? Anyway, let's look up some hairstyles."

Niah nodded, scooting closer to Kitty to see better.

~Many hours later~

Zack shifted nervously, pulling at his tie. "How much longer will they take? We've been waiting for twenty minutes."

Angeal looked at the puppy. "It's only been five, pup. They'll get here soon."

The two were standing beside Sephiroth, Genesis, and Cloud. Cloud wasn't actually supposed to attend the gala because he had elevator duty. It's so much fun being a cadet, you get to push buttons and pray for the elevator to not get stuck. He was only there to dance with Niah a little before going to his duty. Ha. Duty. Writer childish. Duty.

Anyway, the five males were waiting for the girls to appear. They were actually expecting them to be a little late, but that probably wouldn't happen with Angel with them. Angel would rather be early than be late.

The elevator doors opened and more couples filed out. Behind the crowd, stood SOLDIERS female Trinity.

Angel stepped out first, wearing a white dress with bedazzled straps. Two went over her shoulders and wrapped underneath her arms while the other two started from the jewel below her cleavage. She wore a pair of white heels with a gold band around her ankles that sparkled slightly. The dress had a long slit up to her mid-thigh, showing her pale skin. Her hair was simply curled over her right shoulder.

Angeal's eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly.

Kitty stepped out next, wearing a dark purple dress with spaghetti straps. Tied around her waist was a slik-like cloth that was slightly darker than the dress. The top had a small flower attached to the right strap. Her simple purple heels clicked as she walked. Her hair was partially pinned up, braided around her cat ears.

Zack's eyes bugged out and his jaw dropped, some drool slinking out.

Niah wore a sky blue dress with a long slit to her upper thigh. It was strapless and showed quite a bit of cleavage. A band of sparkling flowers wrapped around her waist, emphasizing it. Her blue heels were shorter than the others were, and had some sparkles on the heel. Her hair was in a french braid, resting on her left shoulder.

Cloud's eyes nearly popped out his head and his jaw almost met the floor.

Kitty and Niah grinned. Niah gave Kitty a pointed look. "I told you at least one would drool. You owe me five bucks."

Kitty sighed and reached up, into her cleavage. Zack's eyes widened more and his jaw dropped as she pulled five gil out. She sighed, handing it to Niah, who stuffed it in her cleavage.

Cloud drooled, watching them.

Sephiroth cleared his throat, gaining their attention. "It's about to start, so I would suggest we go and find our seats."

The girls nodded and stood beside their lovers, locking arms. Kitty smiled at Genesis and held out her free hand. "C'mon, Genesis. You can walk in with me and Zack."

Genesis rolled his eyes, but took her free arm in his. They walked in behind Angeal and Angel and in front of Cloud and Niah. Of course, Sephiroth was walking in front of all of them.

Everybody stopped talking and stared at them. Kitty stiffened, feeling very sel-conscious by her ears. It wasn't common for anybody to have cat ears on the top of their head. Niah was lucky because her tail was hidden by her dress. Her ears were out for everyone to see.

Zack noticed her stiffness and rubbed her hand softly. He leaned down and quietly said, "Ignore them. They're not worth your time. Besides, you look lovely."

Genesis nodded, squeezing her arm with his own. "If anyone says anything to you, tell me and I'll handle them personally. And then send them to Seph so he can handle them."

Kitty smiled, relaxing slightly. "Thanks you guys. I needed that."

The two smiled at her. However, Genesis' smile seemed... sad almost. Kitty noticed it and tilted her head to wiggle her ears against his arm. She had learned how to move her ears quite well since she got them. She even learned how to tone down the noise so it wasn't so loud.

They sat down and the president nodded, seeing them. He stood and they knew exactly what was about to happen, he was going to give a speech. Niah rested her head on Cloud's shoulder. "Wake me when the food somes out."

He nodded, smiling down at her. "I will. I'll jab you if you start snoring though."

Niah stuck her tongue out at him. Angel rolled her eyes at them, snagging some grapes off the plate in front of her. At least they had some food out; she hadn't eaten since noon.

~After boring speech and eating~

Cloud stood, having to go to the elevator. Niah looked up at him. "Where are you off to? The fun's only beginning."

Cloud sighed sadly. "I've got elevator duty. It's one of the many wonders of being a cadet."

Kitty giggled, walking past them. "He said 'duty'."

Zack chuckled, pulling her to the dance floor with him. Niah shook her head, ignoring them. "I guess I'll join you then. If the elevator happens to 'accidently' break down, I don't think anyone will miss us for too long."

Cloud blushed as he led her out the large room and towards the elevator. Angeal watched them, shaking his head at the two. Angel moved over to him to sit in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. He raised an eyebrow, but rested his hands on her waist. "Hello."

She smiled, blushing slightly. "Hey. So, what's up in Angeal's world?"

He hummed, thinking for a moment. "Well," he began, "I have this wonderful, strong, and beautiful girlfriend who never backs down from a fight and protects her family with her entire heart, body, and soul. I've got a 'daughter' of sorts and my apprentice is her boyfriend. She surprisingly keeps him out of trouble, but also causes a lot of trouble herself. Her lovely sister gets her out of trouble by blaming a certain Turk. I believe Angeal's world is quite beautiful."

Angel blushed and kissed him briefly before standing up. "That was insanely sweet. Now, let's dance."

She stood, pulling him onto his feet. They found Zack twirling Kitty and then dipping her back. Sephiroth was with the president, looking thoroughly bored. Genesis was flirting with some girls in typical Genesis fashion.

Angeal took her left hand in his, resting the other on her waist. Angel placed her hand on his shoulder, giving him a look. "I hope you know I can't dance."

He shrugged slightly. "My mom made me learn to dance, so I'll know how on my wedding day. Anyway, I'll lead you. Just follow me and try not to step on my feet. Heels can be deadly."

Angel smiled and stuck out one foot. "They're deadly for us who don't know how to walk in them too. Kitty took hers off the moment we sat down."

Angeal chuckled. "I should've figured. Now, do what I do."

After a few stumbles and stepping on toes, Angel got the hang of it. Angeal was patient, thankfully, and only had to remind her to stop watching their feet once or twice. She looked over at Zack and Kitty and noticed Kitty was pressed up against Zack tightly. Her eyes narrowed before Angeal pointed lower.

"Look at their feet."

Angel did and merely blinked. Kitty was standing on Zack's feet and he had his arms around her waist, holding her close.

"She trips over air. Of course she would do that. I'm starting to get a little tired."

Angeal raised an eyebrow. "It is almost ten. Time flies when you're having fun."

She nodded, resting her head on his chest. "When's that mission to Wutai? I know it kept getting postponed."

"We're heading out the day after tomorrow. I asked if Niah and Cloud could join us, but only Niah could come. I asked her and she said if Cloud wasn't going, then she wasn't."

Angel sighed, shaking her head. "Alright. Let's go sit down. My feet are sorta getting tired. I'm used to fighting on my feet all day long, but not dancing I guess."

Angeal chuckled, leading her to the table to sit down. Kitty was there, sitting in Zack's lap and talking to Sephiroth beside her. The silver-haired general looked more at ease than he was when he was talking to the president.

The two sat down beside each other, catching part of Kitty's animated conversation, "-and then we threw the bombs at them and ran out like a bat out of hell. It was one of the best dates ever."

Sephiroth chuckled. "I'm sure it was."

Kitty suddenly jumped up and smiled at him. "I want to dance with you, Shiny."

He glanced at her. "I am sure Zack would prefer to dance with you."

She pouted, making him smirk. "I already danced with Zack. I want to dance with my big brother."

He sighed. "Alright. Let's dance."

Kitty's smile widened and she pulled him onto the dancefloor, resting one hand on his shoulder and the other in his hand. Sephiroth gripped her hand lightly and held her waist with the other.

They danced to the music, Sephiroth still glaring at other males over the top of Kitty's head. Kitty sighed and tugged on his hair lightly to get his attention. "Shiny, stop glaring. Your face will get stuck like that."

Sephiroth scoffed lightly. "That is an old wives' tale. I'm surprised your ears are not hurting from the noise."

Kitty's ears twitched. "I've been ignoring everyone else. It almost feels like I'm normal again."

"You don't have to be normal. Besides, the ears fit you quite well."

Kitty blushed and opened her mouth to say something, but the lights went out and the music stopped playing. She gasped and Sephiroth held her close, eyes searching for danger. "Stay put. I will return shortly."

Sephiroth left her and Kitty stayed standing as people panicked, pushing and shoving. She gasped as she fell down. A hand grabbed her and pulled her up and into the safety of arms. "Calm down, I've got you."

Kitty huddled close to Zack as he carried her over to the others. Angel held a small fire in her hand, using it for light. "Where's Sephiroth at?"

Kitty shook her head. "I don't know. He said he would return shortly. What's going on?"

She looked around and saw Angeal standing close to Angel, his arm around her shoulders. Niah and Cloud were sitting close to each other, sucking face. "Where's Gen-Gen?"

Angeal shook his head softly. "After the power went out, he disappeared. I can't see him."

Zack set Kitty down on her own two feet, but she stayed close to his side. "I've always been able to see good in the dark, but I still can't see him in this crowd. Maybe he had to go to the bathroom or something."

The backup lights flickered on and cast a red glow on everyone. Rufus Shinra stood up on a table and everybody calmed down and stared up at him for answers. "It is nothing to worry about. The power will restore itself soon, so if you all will be patient for about ten minutes you can return to dancing."

Kitty looked up and gaped, pointing at him before yelling out, "That's the asshole that bought me! Then left a pity note and a bag of money! I demand that you -" Angel covered Kitty's mouth with her hand.

He glared at her before he hopped off the table and everyone began moving to sit down in a chair slowly. Sephiroth walked over to the group and stood on Kitty's other side. "I did not see Genesis anywhere in the crowd. I also noticed that several Seconds were missing."

Kitty looked up at Sephiroth. "What? Do you think they just left or something? Maybe they went home or left early to get some sleep."

She was simply being optimistic and they doubted that Genesis had simply gone to bed early. Zack shrugged and wrapped his arms around Kitty tightly. "Let's not let that stop us from having fun. Once the lights turn back on, let's dance. For now, let's just sit here and wait."

And so, they waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, Zack stood up to say, "Alright, let's head up to the rooms. I'm tired of waiting and simply tired."

Kitty yawned, her jaw popping slightly as it stretched out. She held her arms up to Zack. "I don't wanna walk."

Zack rolled his eyes and leaned down to pick her up, grabbing her shoes too. Angel latched herself to Angeal's back, legs wrapping around his waist.

"Alright, let's go. Seph has everything under control here and Genesis should show up in the morning."

The two males rolled their eyes, but walked out carrying their girls. They took the stairs, figuring the elevators were out too.

Once they got to the floor, they walked their seperate ways to go to their own apartments. Angeal and Zack had the same idea; walk inside, kick off shoes, lay their girl on the bed, lay down beside them, and fall asleep.

~Elsewhere~

The occupants of the elevator were all huddled in a corner, trying to ignore the moans coming from the opposite side.


	13. Chapter 13

Kitty looked at the helicopter, then Reno, then back again. "Yeah, I'm staying here and helping Shiny with paperwork or something."

She turned to leave, but Angeal grabbed her shoulder. "We need your... skills... on this mission, Kitty."

Kitty firmly shook her head. "No. I don't trust Reno enough and I'm still afraid of heights. This ain't happening. Nope, no way. Never."

Reno opened his mouth to respon, but Angel held up a finger to silence him. She held up a syringe of clear fluid. "There are two ways this can happen, Kitty. You can come over here nice and quiet or I can drag you over here and knock you out with a brick."

Kitty pouted and held out her arm. Angel jabbed the needle into her arm and emptied it. Kitty giggled for a moment as she swayed. Zack looked at her worriedly. "Is she gonna be okay?"

Angel nodded and Kitty leaned over to Zack. "The drug just knocks her out for a few hours. She'll have a panic attack if she's awake during a flight."

Kitty fell over completely and Zack caught her. She started snoring lightly and snuggled into Zack's arms. "Well," Zack began, "good thing I'm a human pillow."

~A few hours later~

Angel was contently leaning on Angeal, her nose in a book. Angeal was looking out at the slowly darkening sky and kept glancing at Zack and Kitty. The two were sound asleep with Kitty curled up in Zack's lap.

The drug Angel injected Kitty with was evidently very strong, if the drool pouring out of her mouth meant anything. They were going to be at the drop off point soon, so he wondered how much longer she would sleep.

Angel's eyes snapped to Kitty as the smaller girl began to shift and groan as she awoke. Angeal's silent question was answered as her eyes opened slowly. She looked around drowsily and asked, "Where are we, sissy?"

Angeal calmly said, "We're on a mission, Kitty." She knew that if Kitty was told the specific answer, the cat-eared girl would panic.

It was too late, though. Kitty's eyes widened as she took in her surroundings, figuring out where she was exactly. Her breathing quickened and she looked around frantically, gripping Zack's arms tightly.

Angel set her book down and sat up, reaching across to grab Kitty's shoulders. They locked eyes and Angel said, "Breath, Kitty. Breath. You're alright. You're safe. You won't get hurt here."

Kitty's ears flattened and she hissed at her sister, waking Zack. Zack moved his arms slightly, but she had a death grip on them. So, he tilted his head down and rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. Kitty blinked before a pleasant look crossed her face and she began to purr loudly.

Angel let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Zack. She will have a coplete panic attack and it wouldn't be good."

Angeal opened his mouth to say something, but Reno turned around and said, "Alright, kiddies, drop off time."

Angel looked at Angeal curiously. "How exactly are we getting dropped off?"

Angeal leaned down and grabbed two packpack-shaped objects. "Parachutes. We'll have to share, though, Somebody only packed for two." And cue glare towards Zack.

Kitty's head snapped up and she began to grip Zack's arm tightly. Her breathing quickened and she hastily said, "What about our weapons? They're too heavy too bring down with us? We'll be defenseless in enemy territory. They'll find us and kill us and - "

"Kitty! Calm down, yo. We're gonna drop the weapons in after you jump," Reno said.

Angeal took one parachute and handed the other to Zack. "I'll take Kitty and you take Angel. That way we won't fall too quickly or slowly. The weight wll even itself out this way." Zack handed Kitty to Angeal took the pack. Since Angeal already had his strapped on, he grabbed Kitty and opened the door. The wind whipped their hair around and Kitty wrapped her arms and legs around Angeal tightly.

He jumped out the helicopter and free-fell for a few moment before opening the parachute. He felt Kitty dig her nails into his back and winced slightly. Angeal patted her hand with one hand cautiously. "It's alright. You're doing wonderful. Just think of it like floating softly to the ground."

Her shaking subsided slightly and her gri[p loosened. She was so still that he almost thought she had fallen asleep.

They were about twenty yards above the treeline when they heard a small 'ping' and a hole found itself in the chute. Kitty gasped loudly as their descent quickened.

Angeal silently cursed before wriggling his hand between his and Kitty's bodies to unsnap the pack. "Kitty, unwrap your legs and hold onto the front of my shirt?"

"Why?"

"Just trust me."

Kitty shakily unwrapped her legs and grabbed the front of his shirt. ANgeal took the pack off completely and moved so Kitty was curled on his chest and his back would hit the ground.

Tree limbs slapped and cut their skin, but Angeal took the brunt of the damage. Angeal let out a gasp as he finally hit the ground.

Kitty looked up at him and slid out of his grip. Her hands hovered over him and she said, "Where does it hurt?"

Angeal groaned and gripped his lower ribs. "I think they're cracked a little." SOLDIERS were durable, not invincible. Sephiroth is a debateable point on this fact. The General seemingly never got any form of injury.

Kitty dug through the pouch on her left hip and pulled out a small orb. "Cure1."

Angeal sighed as the in content as the light covered his torso. "Thank you. I didn't know you could use materia without your staff."

Kitty grinned sheepishly. "Angel made sure that I could use Cure under any circumstance. I'm very accident prone. I typically focus on healing magic. Angel prefers using the more fire-based magic. I wonder if Ni-Ni can use any magic. I know she can mess with the soundwaves."

Angeal stood and shrugged. He reached down and helped her to her feet. "You can ask her after the mission. You and Angel are a lot like war and peace."

Kitty shrugged. "Pretty mu - OH MY GAIA SOMETHING TOUCHED ME!"

She jumped and latched onto Angeal. Angeal laughed and looked up for Zack and Angel. "Calm down. Let's go look for the other two and our weapons. You might want to lower your voice, though."

Kitty nodded and moved to sit on his shoulders. Angeal sighed and gripped her ankles. He mainly hoped they wouldn't run into any trouble. Or ninjas.

~Zack and Angel~

Their fall had gone a lot smoother, but they still landed a good mile away from the other two. Rude had dropped their supplies and weapons right after them, so they had a better chance of finding the crate. They had seen Angeal and Kitty go down hard, but disappered after that.

They walked in silence, eyeing their surroundings. Surprisingly enough, Angel broke the silence by saying, 'So, how are you and Kitty doing? Getting along well and everything?"

Zack nodded. "We've been good. She tends to shove me off the bed at night, though."

Angel laughed a little, shaking her head. "She's always done that to me. She once told me that for her heat translates to magnet."

Zack chuckled. "That's about right."

"I'm going to put this next sentence bluntly. You two had better not be having sex before marriage."

Zack's cheeks turned red. "N-No. We get touchy, but we don't do anything past that. I swear it."

Angel nodded at his answer. The two females were both saving themselves for marriage. A little old fashioned, but it's how they simply were. "If she gets pregnant because of you, I'm making sure you will never have kids and raise the child with Kitty. That is a sworn promise."

Zack hands moved to his front. "Please don't."

"I trust you. Also, if you make her come crying to me, I will kill you and make it look like a training accident. I've had years of practice with accidents. Ex-mercenary and all."

Zack gulped. Apparently, Angel wanted to get all the borders laid down before anything could possibly happen. And scare the living daylights out of him. "I promise on my life that I will never make Kitty cry. I will do everything in my power to keep her happy."

Angel was about to respon when she was tackled to the ground. "Sissy! Help! Ninjas!"

Angel sighed as Angeal came into cview. He was panting slightly. He must've ran after Kitty. For someone who hated runnning, the girl sure could run fast when she needed to flee.

"What the hell happened to you two?"

Angel peeled Kitty off her and handed her to Zack. She walked over and placed a hand on Angeal's larger one. The knuckles on his gloves were busted open.

Angeal stood straight and wrapped his arm around Angel's shoulders. "We were ambushed by ninjas. Kitty only has healing materia with her and we had no weapons. I had her hit them over the head with a stick while I knocked them out."

Angel looked at Kitty with narrowed eyes. "I thought I told you to always carry at least a knife with you at all times."

Kitty grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of her head. "I forgot about it. Papa Angeal had everything under control."

Angeal sighed. "Well, let's get our weapons and then head to the compound."

Kitty and Angel grinned. "Are we gonna blow stufff up?"

Angeal nodded slowly. "Yes. You two are unit B. You are in charge of causing a diversion and clearing us a path."

Kitty raised her hand and said, "I have a question. Why are we clearing a path when you two are the heavy hitters?"

Angeal blinked. "You get to blow stuff up."

"Y'know, I think I'm okay with clearing a path."

~An hour later~

The group had found their weapons and split up. Now, the two girls were hiding in the shadows and setting the bombs in place. They may have brought a little extra, but if Angeal and Zack wanted a clear path, they would need to suck it up and not be inside until the explosion subsided.

Elsewhere, Zack and Angeal were crouching behind the brush. Angeal glanced at Zack. "B Unit will set off the diversion. That's our cue."

Zack nodded once. "The diversion will allow us to infiltrate."

"Right. I'll set the bomb inside the fortress. You'll charge the front gate, and..."

Zack grinned and nodded excitedly. "Uh-huh, and? And? And? And?"

"Indulge yourself."

"You got it! That's what I do best!" He stood and began to pace. "Come on, B Unit..."

The ground started shaking and fireworks shot out of the explosion.

Angeal nodded to Zack. "Begin mission."

The two split up. Zack did a back flip over the bushes and Angeal ran towards the right. Zack ran to the front gate, only to be stopped by a groupd of Wutai warriors.

The leader said, "The enemy is but one man! Obliterate him!"

Zack fought them easily enough. Mostly, the gunners on the wall gave him the most trouble. So, he shot a few small fireballs at them. They dodged and he cursed until a blur ran through them, effectively killing them.

The figure landed and flipped, catching the chakram. Zack waved at the figure. "Thanks, Niah!"

She grinned and waved at him. "I'll help you out with the longer ranged enemies."

Niah jumped off the wall and landed beside him. Zack briefly hugged her before going to the large double-doors. "Where's Spikey at?"

"He's guarding Lazard. Sephiroth is with them as well."

Zack nodded. "Got it."

They were stopped by another group of Wutai soldiers. Zack's phone rang and he answered it.

Angeal was on the other end. "Were you able to get inside the fortress?"

Zack nodded and watched as Niah took out the guards on the roof. "Piece of cake! Niah's helping me with the ones on the roof."

"Don't get too careless, I've heard that the Wutai keep a large monster for anti-SOLDIER purposes. It should be somewhere inside Fort Tamblin."

"If I take it out, do you think I'll make First?"

"It depends on the quality of work. Your main duty is to draw the Wutai troops to you by running amok. Do that well and the director will give you a favorable evaluation."

"Oh, that'll be easy! Just leave it to us!"

He hung up and turned to Niah. "We've got to get rid of as many Wutai troops as possible. The more we get, the better."

Niah nodded. "I heard that part. We'd better get going."

Zack grinned. "Now, I've got some company. This'll make it even easier."

Niah rolled her eyes at him. "Don't get too cocky."

~B Unit~

Kitty laughed with pure glee as she spun through the air. She shot burning, freezing, and electrocuting enemies left and right. Angel had 'borrowed' two smaller swords and were dancing as she sliced through the still-standing enemies.

Angel growled as a bullet zipped past her. She dropped one sword and grabbed a gun from a holster. They only had two guns with them, but the guns used materia as bullets. Currently, her two materia in use were Wind and Stop. She used Wind to propell Kitty through the air and Stop to literally stop enemies in their tracks.

She froze the snipers and they fell to the ground, head-first while keeping her sword arm swinging. Kitty let out an ear-peircing screech and was thrown at Angel. Angel shot the Wind materia at Kitty, but the smaller female still plowed into her.

Angel fell down and groaned a little. Kitty was ten feet away and looked unconscious. Angel slowly stood, but the barrel of a gun was pressed to the back of her neck. Kitty was lifted by her arms by two Wutai soldiers.

Angel examined Kitty carefully. A small trickle of blood formed from her forehead and her ears twitched as their enemies spoke in Wutai. Angel watched the ears carefully. Kitty's ears always twitched, even in her sleep, but they were more active while she was awake. Angel stared for a moment longer before smirking to herself. Kitty was wide awake.

Kitty was limp in the grip of the soldiers. She was waiting for the perfect moment. Her staff had fallen when she was thrown and she was waiting for them to carry her right past it.

They dragged her towards their commander and right past her staff. She moved her foot so her toes hooked under the staff. She kicked it into the air and jerked the two into each other, shoving herself up. Bullets followed her and she grabbed her staff, casting Protect on herself.

The bullets bounced off the spell, protecting her. She pointed her staff and started spinning, forming a pillar of flames. The Angel kicked the gun away from her and shot the Wind materia at the pillar, moving it. It moved and sucked up some enemies, setting them aflame.

Angel shot the man that was pointing the gun at her, making him fly back to the pillar. She laughed and grabbed her other gun, shooting them both in perfect sync. Stop first to keep them from fleeing and Wind to blow them into the pillar.

Finally, the enemies were all vanquished and Kitty was on the ground, catching her breath. Angel walked over to her and nudged her side with her foot. "You dead already?"

Kitty gave her a tired glare. "I created a pillar of flames and kept it going for nearly half an hour while making sure my Protect didn't wear off so I'd get burns up my ass."

Angel rolled her eyes. "You're fine. Besides, I can heal up to third degree burns. Let's go find Zack and see if he needs any help."

Kitty sat up, resting her elbows on her knees. "You got an extra Ether on you? I already downed mine."

Angel nodded and reached into her own pouch. Hers was on her right hip. She pulled out the small vial of green liquid. "Here ya go. This should fix you right up."

Kitty grabbed it from Angel's hand and uncorked it, tasting the bitterness. She made a face as she finished it. "I swear I'm going to make a potion that tastes sweet or at least less bitter."

Angel pulled Kitty up and began talking towards the doors. "Let's go find your puppy. You two are hardly apart."

Kitty nodded excitedly. "We aren't apart for very long. Even during class, we're right beside each other."

Angel looked down the halls and saw they were clear, walking down it. "How are your classes going?"

"They're alright. Mr. Matthews is my favorite teacher. He teaches materia class and shows us how to use it in the middle of class. It's really funny when he gets shocked and his hair stands on end."

Angel shook her head. "I don't think you need that class. You know more than enough about materia."

Kitty looked sheepish. "I don't know all of them. I mostly know the ones we use. I am learning a lot. Shiny has been helping me with reading and writing."

Angel elbowed her side a little. "Aren't you becoming a little nerd?"

Kitty rolled her eyes at Angel. "You only taught me the basics and that's all I needed then. The topic of reading and writing was never important when it was just us. I knew how to hack computers and stuff, but I still had trouble reading books and magazines."

Angel's brow furrowed. "You loved reading magazines though. I always thought you could read."

Kitty gave a half-smile. "I just looked at the pictures and sounded out the words. I would get irritated though and just stop trying. You were always busy doing something and I didn't want to be a bother."

Angel sighed to herself. She had always assumed Kitty could read, but never asked. Angel was always busy before SOLDIER. She was either training, out on a job, or looking for another job. They were always on the move and hardly ever had a break. Kitty had nowhere else to go, so she simply followed Angel wherever she went.

Angel wrapped one arm around Kitty's shoulders. "Trust me, you were never a bother to me. You helped out in every way possible and then some. I would've taught you myself. I could have stopped training and helped you. I can read and write as good as the next person. If I had known, Kitty, I would have taught you everything I know."

Kitty nodded and hugged Angel around her waist. "I guess now I'll be teaching you what I learn in class."

Angel rolled her eyes. "Don't get cocky. I'm still the brains and the muscle. Which brings up a good question; what are you?"

Kitty grinned. "We're war and peace. You hurt and I heal. Niah is the awesome middle ground. She hurts and heals."

"You are something else. I hope you're aware of that."

"I am fully aware."

~About ten minutes later~

"Are we lost?"

Angel sighed. "I don't know where we are."

"You just defined the word lost."

"You already asked if we are lost ten times."

"I have a right to know."

"Fine, we're lost. Are you happy?"

"No. I want my puppy."

"Of course you do."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

Before Kitty could respond, they heard several clangs of metal on metal. They ran towards the sound and saw Zack get thrown into a pillar. Niah was in the air, throwing her chakrams at the monster. It knocked her out the way and into Zack.

Zack and Niah stared up in fear as it raised its weapon before collapsing. Angeal gave Zack a glare. "That's one more you owe me."

Zack rolled his eyes at Angeal before nudging Niah off him. The girl swayed for a moment and rested a hand against the pillar. Zack stood and looked over to see Kitty and Angel.

"Kitten!"

Kitty grinned and ran over to him. Hre eyes began scanning his form, checking for injuries. After deeming him uninjured, she hugged him tightly. "I missed you already."

Zack rolled his eyes. "We were seperate for less than an hour. I had some help getting here."

Niah nodded. "Porcupine head here ain't worth shit when it comes to long range. Good thing I helped him out. If I hadn't he might be in a pool of his own blood by now."

Angeal cleared his throat, gaining their attention. "According to the bomb I set up, we've only got fifteen minutes according to the bomb I set in place."

Kitty grinned. "You made sure to set the attachment in place, right?"

"Yes, I added your special part."

Kitty nodded. "Good. Now, I believe I can get us out of here in less than five minutes. Stand back and you may want to watch for falling rubble."

The other four gave Kitty plenty of room as she slammed her staff on the ground, a summoning circle forming, glowing green. Angel rolled her eyes and hugged Angeal. "She's summoning Titan."

Angeal raised an eyebrow as the earth below Kitty began to shift and form and rise. "I am assuming that Titan is your summon."

Angel nodded. "Kitty used to summon him every other day because that was her first spell."

The ground below Kitty stood and formed into the shape of a man. Kitty grinned as the rocks began to fall off and shape into a man. His shaggy brown hair had dirt loaded down in it and brushed his shoulders. He wore a simple dark green shirt and a pair of torn jeans with no shoes. His eyes were closed, but he placed a hand on Kitty's head without any fumbling.

His fingers brushed the ears and he opened his eyes, revealing one brown eye and one green eye. He pulled her head to him, examining the cat ears. Titan yawned broadly before slowly saying, "When did you grow these, Katherine?"

Kitty groaned at the name and pulled away from him. "About two months ago. We need you to make us a quick escape route. A bomb is about to go off in a few minutes."

Titan nodded. "I guess I can do that for you and your friends. You all might want to stand a little close."

The group moved closer and Zack pulled Kitty under his arm, making his point clear. Titan rolled his eyes and stood in front of the group. He held his arms out, facing away from them.

He slammed his hands on the ground. A tunnel appeared and he began walking into it. After a moment he loudly said, "You might want to hurry unless you want to get blown up."

They quickly began following him through the dark tunnel. Kitty tapped her staff once and a flame sat on the tip, giving them some light. They followed Titan as he led the way through his tunnels. After some time, Titan stopped and looked up. "There's two people above us. One relatively short and the second is average height.

Kitty grinned and nodded excitedly. "That's Little Brother Choco guarding the director. Let us up here."

Titan shrugged. "Sure."

He held his hands the ground above them opened and they saw Cloud peering down. He blinked in surprise. "Hello, Kitty."

Kitty grinned and strapped her staff to her back. She held her hands up to Cloud. "Up."

He rolled his eyes and reached down, grabbing her hand. He pulled her up easily. Niah called out, "Spike! Get that cute little ass over here!"

Cloud's blushing face appeared above Niah. "Yes?"

"Help me up."

He leaned down and grabbed her outstretched hands. He pulled her up and Niah kissed him right there. Angel sighed and felt hands on her waist, lifting her up. She reached up and climbed up, Angeal helping her. She turned around and reached down to pull Angeal up. Titan closed up the tunnel and stood beside Kitty.

"You've gotten taller, shrimp."

She glared up at him. "I want to introduce you to everyone. This is my family. Papa Angeal and mama Angel. Of course you know her. Little Brother Choco and his girlfriend Sister Ni-Ni. Cloud and Niah. Lastly, Zack the Puppy. My puppy. Oh, and Lazard."

Zack wrapped his arms around Kitty, making his point clear. "And this is our little Kitty cat. My kitty."

Titan rolled his eyes. "I guess I'm her original big brother, then. I'm happy you've finally got your own family, Kitty and Angel. I'll see you all around some other time. Adios."

He disappeared in a swirl of dirt, leaving them.

Lazard looked at Zack. "Second Class Zack Fair."

Zack looked up at him. "Sir?"

"You performed your duties admirably at Fort Tamblin. I saw it with my own eyes. Frankly, my evalutaion of you is... You are a frightening indivutal. Not any man could annihilate an entire enemy force by himself." Niah cleared her throat loudly. "WIth some help, of course."

Angeal nodded. "I was taken aback myself. You really have frown into a fine warrior."

Lazard said, "Your bracery during the Wutai War will be remembered for generations to come. It seems your dream of becoming a hero has already come true."

Angeal gave Lazard a look. "Let's not get carried away, Director. Zack still has a lot to accomplish."

Lazard chuckled. "I suppose you're right. Zack, I hope you'll continue to excel."

Zack puffed up his chest proudly. "It'll be easy with my motivator here."

He petted Kitty's head and she purred, leaning back into him. Angeal turned and walked to the head of the group. "Let's get going. We've got to meet up with Sephiroth."

Angeal began walking with Angel beside him. Niah and Cloud followed, walking beside Lazard. Zack grabbed Kitty's hand and held her still for a moment. "I want to talk to you about something."

She looked curiously at him. "What is it?"

He opened his mouth, but three enemies dropped from the trees, circling them. "After we finish these guys off."

Kitty grinned and pulled the two daggers out her boots. She came prepared for Wutai. Enemy territory and all.

The three fell easily and they heard Angeal call for them, "Zack! Kitty! Come on!"

They ran ahead and saw two fallen enemies. Two more appeared behind Zack and Kitty. Niah and Cloud were holding their weapons up, looking out for more.

Angeal stepped up and said, "Take the Director to a safe place."

Lazard nodded. "Then contact Sephiroth."

Angeal briefly said, "They can take care of you." He drew his Buster Sword and Angel stepped up beside him. "I've got them. Take care of the others."

He leaned over and kissed her forehead before nudging her towards the others. Angel looked hurt for a moment before steeling herself. "Got it. Be careful."

"Now go."

Angel nodded and looked at Lazard. "Follow me."

Lazard nodded. "Of course."

The group ran, leaving Angeal. They stopped when they met with two infantrymen. "Thank goodness you're safe, Director Lazard," one said.

Lazard nodded. "I should be fine now. Go and assist Angeal."

Zack nodded and nodded at Kitty. "Let's go."

Angel shook her head. "No. Take Niah. Kitty has used too much stamina summoning Titan and creating that fire tornado. Niah doesn't use as much magic and won't tire out as easily."

Niah stepped up beside Zack and patted Kitty's shoulder. "I'll keep the puppy safe as long as you keep an eye on my Chocobo."

Kitty grinned and gave her a mock salute. "I'll keep one eye firmly on his ass, just for you."

Niah rolled her eyes. "Let's go, Zack."

Zack nodded. "I know, I know."

The two left the group, running. They finally stopped at the two fallen enemies that had stopped the group earlier. Zack cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Angeal! Angeal!" a few times before stopping when Niah slapped the back of his head.

"Stop that. Look at them closely. What's different about them?"

Zack walked beside her and crouched beside them. "What? These guys aren't Wutai troops."

A flaming ball appeared before them and backed up a little, creating a summoning circle. Light flashed brightly and a summong appeared.

Zack angrily yelled out, "A summon? Who called it out?"

Of course, nobody answered him. Instead, Ifrit charged at them, fireballs in each hand. Zack blocked and Niah dodged, throwing a chakram at it. It bounced off and Ifrit used Hellfire, blasting them both back.

Niah hit the ground hard and struggled to stand for a moment. During this moment, Ifrit raised a flaming fist and ran at her. She gasped and closed her eyes, waiting for the impact. It didn't come and she looked up, seeing Zack using his sword to block the punch.

"You okay down there?"

Niah nodded and stood as Zack shoved Ifrit away. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me, pup."

Zack rolled his eyes before turning towards the summon. The two charged, weapons at the ready. They fought and fought, dodging the fireballs throw at them. Ifrit used Hellfire again and the two flew back, but Niah controlled the soundwaves to stop them completly.

She threw both her chakrams after casting a small Blizzard spell on them. They hit Ifrit and he fell to the ground. Niah sighed, walking over to grab her weapons. She turned around and heard Zack call out, "Look out!"

She turned and saw Ifrit stand and swat her away towards Zack harshly. The summon readied his finishing blow before Sephiroth came into view. He quickly slashed down Ifrit, making the summon explode.

Zack caught Niah, but fell back. She groaned and he looked worriedly at her. "That was crazy."

Sephiroth glanced at them to make sure they were still alive before walking over to the fallen enemies. He slid off their helmets and Zack stood, Niah in his arms. Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "Genesis."

Zack walked over to him and looked at them. "I didn't know Genesis had a twin."

"A Genesis copy."

Niah raised an eyebrow before glancing at the two Genesis'. "A human copy? You sound crazy, Seph."

Sephiroth looked up at Zack and seriously said, "Where is Angeal?"

Zack shrugged a little. "I thought he was fighting around here..."

Sephiroth looked down. "So he's gone too."

"What? What does that mean?"

Sephiroth stood, his eyes narrowed and his voice like steel. No emotion could be seen on the General's face. "It means Angeal has betrayed us as well."

Niah stood and grabbed Sephiroth's collar, pulling him down to her level. "No way! Angeal wouldn't betray us! You take that back, Sephiroth!"

Sephiroth easily pulled away from her and turned around. His fists were clinched tightly at his side. Zack threw his arms to his sides. "Angeal wouldn't betray us! Ever!"

Sephiroth looked at Zack, but only said, "We should return to the others before it gets too late. Doesn't Kitty get paranoid at night?"

Zack nodded once. "Let's go."


	14. Chapter 14

"Man, what is with Angeal? How long is he gonna slack off like this? It's been a month now! Sephiroth's got it all wrong, too! Lumping Angeal together with Genesis! Genesis is a deserter who took a bunch of Seconds and Thirds with him! He used his copies to attack us! Angeal would never condone something like that! He valued his honor more than anyone else! Ugh! Everything's so messed up these days! Angeal, just come back, please!"

Zack was in the lounge with Kunsel, doing squats as he ranted. Everything was messed up since Angeal left with Genesis. Of course, they all didn't want to believe Angeal would truly desert them like that. Everyone in the 'family' had changed as well.

Angel had become a lot more reserved, but didn't show she missed Angeal on the outside. Unless somebody asked her about it, then Shin-Ra would have another hole in the wall. Kitty and Zack's pranking had dropped drastically. Kitty didn't even jump on anybody for hugs or even climb through the vents to spy on people. Niah had begun training Cloud to help him move up the ranks, but Cloud was clumsy with swords and Niah's patience had thinned out majorly. Sephiroth was hardly seen anymore and only came out his office when he was reminded he needed food or had a mission.

SOLDIER was a whole lot quieter and seemed gloomy. A month ago, you would've walked into the building and heard laughter or screams or even small explosions fill any silence. Now, you would be lucky to hear someone yell 'Shiny'. Lazard had gotten used to Kitty popping in on him through the vents, just curious to see what he was doing, and now the girl simply knocked on the door and walked in slowly.

Without Angeal and Genesis to train Kitty and Zack, they had to be assigned new mentors. Kitty flat out refused to and said that she could train with Sephiroth until Angeal returned. In fact, they both refused and just trained with Sephiroth. Sephiroth didn't mind since Kitty mostly helped Zack with materia and he helped her with close-range fighting.

Zack's phone rang and he flipped it open, hearing, "Second Class Zack?"

"That would be me. Who is this?"

"Director Lazard wants to see you and Katherine. Go to the briefing room."

The other person hung up before he could ask who they were. They sounded familiar, but he couldn't place his finger on it. "Who was that?" He shrugged to himself before turning away. "I'll see you later, Kunsel."

Kunsel waved at him. "See you, Zack."

Zack walked to his apartment and opened the door. Kitty was on the couch, flipping through a book. "Hey, Zackie."

Zack smiled a little at the name. He walked over and crouched beside her, looking at the book. "Whatcha reading?"

She shrugged. "Some book Angel gave me. It's not half bad. So, what's up?"

"Lazard wants to see us."

Kitty sat up and slid a bookmark in place. Niah had gotten for her as a gift; it had puppies and kittens on it. She set the book down and stood. "Let's get going. We wouldn't want to keep him waiting."

Zack nodded and followed her out. They walked in silence, their boots making the only noise as they walked. Once at Lazard's office, Zack ran up to him. "Any word on Angeal?"

Lazard shook his head. "He hasn't contacted his family either."

Kitty's shoulders slumped and Zack sighed and simply said, "What's this about?"

"A new assignment. I want you to go to the hometown of our missing First Class, Genesis."

"Huh?" Even Kitty looked stumped.

Lazard leaned forward on his elbows. "According to the parents, they've had no contact with Genesis whatsoever. But, they can't be trusted."

Kitty sat on Lazard's desk and looked at him curiously. "Why? I thought family could be trusted."

Lazard gave her a somewhat sad look. "They're his family. They could be keeping him and not telling us."

Zack nodded, going 'mh hm' to himself repeatedly.

Lazard spoke again. "I had already dispatched some staff, but we've lost contact. I want you to go and investigate. Kitty and Angel will go with you if they are both willing."

Kitty nodded, already texting on her phone. "Give me one minute and I'll tell you sissy's answer." A moment of waiting before a 'ding'. "No can do. Niah said she'll come with since Cloud's busy with testing all week."

Lazard nodded. "Alright. Also, he will go with you."

Tseng walked over to them. "Tseng, of the Turks. I believe we have met before."

Zack looked at Kitty. "This is starting to look real gloomy."

Tseng ignored the comment. "Tell me when you are ready to go."

Kitty raised a finger. "Give me a minute and I'll go get Ni-Ni."

Zack's phone rang and he answered it, speaking for a moment with Kunsel. "I've gotta speak with Kunsel for a moment."

Tseng nodded. "Make it quick."

Kitty felt some form of glee at the feeling of going on a mission again. She had been laying around, doing absolutely nothing since Wutai. Angel and Niah had gone on a few petty missions to keep their mind off things.

Kitty felt a grin spread across her face as she ran towards a training room. She heard shouting and saw Niah yelling at Cloud. The poor male had his ears over his hands as she yelled. Kitty's brow furrowed and her smile dropped.

She thought of a way to get Niah to stop scolding Cloud and a lightbulb could've appeared above her head. She readied her muscles and leaped on Niah, hugging her tightly. "Ni-Ni! We've got a mission to Banora!"

Niah sighed and pulled Kitty off her. "Alright, I guess. Cloud, keep training when you have the time. Don't forget to study for your tests."

Cloud nodded and uncovered his ears. "I will. I'll be sure to make sure to do good on my tests. Good luck on your mission, Niah."

He pulled her in for a hug and kissed her lips. Niah returned the kiss before pulling away and slapping his ass. "Be good, Spike. I'll see you once we're finished."

Cloud nodded, blushing slightly. "Alright. Have fun and take pictures for me."

"I will."

"Let's get going, Kitty. I've gotta pack first."

"Alright. I've got to get something from sissy first, though."

The girls left and Kitty ran to the next training room over. Angel was fighting with Sephiroth. She swung her swords angrily at him, letting out her pent-up anger. She sat down beside the door and waited to get noticed. She would never interupt Angel during training. Angel isn't afraid to snap at Kitty and will do so in a heartbeat.

Sephiroth glanced over and blocked Angel. "Stop."

Angel stopped and placed her swords on her back. She looked over and saw Kitty. "What do you need?"

Kitty stood and hugged Angel. Angel hugged back tightly. "I need to know where you keep the drugs to knock me out at. The flight to Banora will be shorter than Wutai, but it's still a flight."

Angel nodded. "They're in the hall closet in the black case. SInce the trip is shorter, make sure you only get half there and half back."

Kitty nodded. "Thanks. My fear has gotten better, though."

"It has, but you still fear flying. You'd better get going. I don't want you to be late."

Kitty nodded again and walked over to hug Sephiroth. Sephiroth patted her head. "Get going, Kitty."

She nodded against his chest. "I will. I haven't seen you much lately."

"I know. It's been different since Wutai." He knew better than to say the words. Angel never let anyone say Angeal abonded them and get away with it. Kitty once said it and Angel put her through the wall without a second thought.

"I'll see you two after the mission. Me and Niah will take pictures for you two."

Sephiroth's eye twitched. "Use proper grammar like I taught you."

Kitty simply stuck her tongue out at him. "Not while speaking, I won't. You taught me how to write correctly. I'll see you two after the mission. Kick his ass, sissy."

Angel grinned evily at Sephiroth once Kitty left. She had a lot of pent up anger to get out. "Now, where were we?"

Sephiroth simply drew Masamune.

~small timeskip~

Tseng looked at the three. "Are you ready?"

Zack glanced at the two girls. They looked ready. "A routine job, right? No sweat!"

"I wonder. Originally, Sephiroth was assigned to this mission. That means it's a top-priority matter. Be alert, or you'll fail." That last comment was for Kitty and Zack. If they wanted to be Firsts, every mission they went on would have to be successful. If they failed, it made their job harder.

Kitty curiously looked at Tseng. "And Shiny?"

"Refusing to go, apparently."

Niah rolled her eyes. "They spoil him too much!"

Tseng covered his chuckle. "Why don't you say that to his face?"

Niah raised an eyebrow. "As if I won't. Test me."

~to Banora~

Kitty stood and stretched. She looked around and stared at the trees. "Okay, the trees are officially weird as hell."

Niah nodded beside her. "They really are weird. Trees grow up, not in arches."

Kitty took a picture with her camera before slipping it into her pocket. "Even the apples look odd. They're light purple-ish."

She took another picture of the apple and bit into it. Niah rolled her eyes. "How do they taste?"

Kitty shrugged. "They're pretty sweet, actually."

Zack and Tseng were ahead of them, walking away. The girls jogged to catch up with them, Kitty still carrying her apples. She even grabbed more and stuck them in her pouch.

The trees made a tunnel and Zack noted, "Weird-looking trees."

Tseng glanced at him. "They're called Banora Whites. AKA Dumbapples.

"So, that means we're in Banora?"

Kitty and Niah simultaneously said, "You didn't know that?"

Zack rolled his eyes. "That means this is Angeal's hometown."

Tseng nodded. "That is correct. Genesis and Angeal have known each other for a long time."

Niah walked inbetween them, saying, "Alright, boys, let's go."

Kitty nodded and followed her. "Yeah. I wanna meet their parents."

They walked forward and two enemies dropped down. "Okay, after we finish off these idiots."

Zack glanced at them after they were dispatched. "These guys! We saw them in Wutai, too!"

Niah kicked off their helmets, seeing they were Genesis copies. She glared and Kitty refused to look at their faces.

Tseng calmly said, "So they are here. We haven't seen any of the townspeople. They may have taken control of the entire town. When Genesis deserted, he took a large arsenal of weapons with him. The president's orders are to retrieve or destro these wepons immediately upon discovery."

Zack nodded. "Leave it to us." He wrapped one arm around Kitty and the other around Niah's shoulders.

Tseng nodded. "Lead the way."

Zack spotted a large machine with two of the copies. He quickly took care of the copies before the machine shot a missile at him. He sliced it in half and it split, blowing up in two smaller explosions.

Niah jumped away as one of the explosions were close to her. "Hey! Watch it!"

Kitty nodded and stood beside Zack. "It attacks slowly and is relatively weak. A good electric spell will knock down by at least half."

Zack glanced at her. "You won't pass out or get too tired, will you?"

Kitty grinned. "I've been training myself along with you. My stamina and your materia in general. You should really stick to melee, though."

They jumped up as a barrage of bullets were sent their way. Niah grinned and held up her hands, punching daggers gleaming. "I think we've done enough talking."

Sure enough, the machine was weak and fell easily. Zack looked at one of the fallen enemies. "A Genesis copy..."

Tseng walked past Zack. "Where did you hear that?"

Niah eyed him. "About time you caught up."

Zack simply said, "Sephiroth said it."

Tseng looked at the smoking maching. "The technology was stolen from our scientists. It apparently allows Genesis's abilites and traits to be transplanted to SOLDIER members and monsters."

Zack quietly said, "SOLDERIS and monsters... we're the same?"

Kitty glared at him, hearing the comment. She walked over and grabbed Zack's shoulders, shaking him slightly. "You don't ever say that again. We are not monsters and never will be monsters. We are SOLDIER and I know the company isn't all heroes and saving the planet, but SOLDIER as a whole stopped the war with Wutai and we helped save a lot of lives. If I ever hear you say we are monsters, I will slap you so hard that your mama will feel it."

Zack grinned sheepishly. "I won't. Now, let's check this thing out. It won't start attacking us, will it?"

Tseng called to him, "Stop playing around, Zack. Let's move on. Internal issues like these must be dealt with before the public finds out."

Niah looked around. "And still no sign of townspeople. Maybe they're in the houses."

Kitty shrugged. "Let's go check. If nobody shows up, can I take anything I find that I can use?" Cue Tseng glaring at her. "Alright, alright, I won't take anything that doesn't belong to me."

Tseng walked beside them as they stopped by a large manor. "This is Genesis's house. HIs parents are wealthy land owners."

Zack looked up at the large Banora tree infront of the manor. He remembered something Angeal once told him, 'But I never stole from that tree, because the wealthy man's son was my friend.'

Tseng walked forward a little. "They weren't mere acquaintances. They grew up together and were best friends."

Zack mused aloud, "So Genesis desert and gets his best friend Angeal to join him... Is that it?"

Tseng only said, "Sephiroth believes that's the case." He looked over to a tree and nodded at the rocks at it's back. "A gravestone. Still very new. Zack and Kitty, go find Angeal's house. Niah, check the other houses. I'll check the grave."

Zack made a grossed out noise. "So Turks have to do this stuff?"

"Someone has to do it."

"Sounds rough."

"Don't worry. We're paid much better than you are."

Zack sputtered out, "No way!"

Kitty patted his shoulder. "It's alright. Let's figure out which one is Angeal's house."

Tseng kneeled next to the grave. "Be careful. It might be under enemy control."

Zack scanned them and Niah walked over to one of the houses and picked the lock, walking inside. "I'll be snooping if you need me."

Kitty watched as a fiend came out the door and attacked Zack, posioning him. He killed it and she quickly cured him. "Don't get posioned too many times. My limit of curing each satus ailment is fifteen."

The two walked around and checked each door. Finally, one opened and Zack walked in first. An older woman sat at the table, a green sweater tied around her shoulders. She had dark wavy hair and hazel eyes. "Yes? Can I help you?"

Zack stammered for a moment and Kitty stepped around him. "Hello, ma'am. Would you happen to be Papa Angeal's mother? My name is Kitty and this is my boyfriend Zack."

She gave Kitty an odd look. "Are you Zack the puppy and Katherine the kitty?"

The couple blinked. "Excuse us?"

She laughed a little. "My son wrote about you two once. Zero attention span and as restless as a puppy and kitten. Kitty, that is what you go by, correct? He didn't tell me he had a daughter with cat ears, though, he did tell me about an Angel."

Kitty nodded, blushing slightly. "Yes, ma'am. Angel is my big sister and is dating Papa Angeal. I'm not his daughter, but I do say we're a family."

"You're not.. here together with Genesis, are you?"

Zack shook his head. "No, we're not. Don't worry."

"What is happening with my son?"

"I'm not really sure."

Gillian looked down at her hands. Kitty saw it and walked over, placing a comforting hand on the older woman's shoulder. "Genesis came back here, a month ago, with an army of cohorts. And they proceeded to take the lives of many townspeople. Genesis, he used to be such a good boy."

Zack stepped foward a little. "Is Angeal..."

Gillian grabbed Kitty's hand, covering it with her own. "He came here. But, he left his sword and went off somewhere." She turned to look and, sure enough, there was the Buster Sword. "That sword represents our family's honor."

Kitty looked down. "That's why he never uses it."

Zack nodded and walked over to Gillian, kneeling beside her chair. "I'll take care of Angeal. You should go and hide somewhere."

"Don't be concerned. Genesis, cannot harm me."

Zack nodded and stood. "Let's go."

Kitty spotted some pictures and walked over to them. "Oh, a picture of Angeal! He was so young. If he were younger, I would so date him."

Gillian laughed. "That was when he first joined SOLDIER. He and Genesis joined at the same time."

Zack walked over and spotted a baby picture. "Aww, how adorable..."

Gillian looked at Kitty and smiled. "I always wanted to see what Angeal's children. Of course, he was always too rough for the girls and they never were too fond of him. Is this Angel here with you?"

Kitty shook her head sadly. "She said she didn't want to. Here's a picture of her." Kitty scanned through her pictures and handed the camera to Gillian.

Gillian smiled and closed her eyes. "She is lovely. Those two are going to have beautiful children together."

Kitty nodded. "That's I keep telling them. It was nice to meet you."

Gillian waved as she left. "Goodbye, Katherine."

Kitty let Zack tug her out the house. "She was really nice. I hope we'll get to meet her again someday."

Zack nodded and heard Niah shout. Him and Kitty raced down the hill and Kitty tripped, rolling down the hill as Niah quickly finished off the three enemies. Kitty stopped at Niah's feet, on her back. Kitty let a grin cross her face and waved. "Hi."

Niah rolled her eyes and held her hand to Kitty. "Hi to you too. Did you find Angeal's mom?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah. We saw a picture of Angeal when he was younger."

Zack's phone rang and he heard Tseng say, "There's a factory on the outskirts of town. I saw a Genesis copy go inside."

"You think that's their headquaters?"

"Most likely. I'm currently on a cliff overlooking the factory. A frontal attack is inadcisable. We'll go in from above. Come to the clifftop immediately."

Zack nodded and shoved his phone in his pocket. "There's a factory on the outskirts and we're going in from a clifftop."

Niah looked incredulous. "Okay, you guys go in through the roof like crazy people. I'm going to knock on the front door."

Kitty nodded. "I'll be with Niah. My fear of heights is better so that I can climb things easier. Not jump off clifftops through rooftops of factories."

Zack sighed. "Alright. Kitty, no bombing the entire place. Just small bombs. That means barely five foot radius."

Kitty grinned sheepishly. "You know me so well."

Niah rolled her eyes, "Let's go. We can hold their attention off of you two. You two worry about finding Genesis and Angeal."

The three split up. Niah and Kitty spotted Tseng on the roof. Niah's phone rang and she heard Tseng say, "You're supposed to be on the clifftop."

Niah grinned and raised a fist to him, flipping the bird at him. "Me and Kitty are going to play and keep the badies off of you two."

She hung up and turned her phone off completely. Kitty gave Niah a look. "So, you want to knock first or should I?"

Niah shrugged. "You brought any bombs with you?"

Kitty rolled her eyes and pulled out two homemade bombs from her pouch. "They're big enough to make some noise and blast those doors down without a problem. You wouldn't happen to have some glasses with you, would you?"

Niah pulled the small bag off her bag. "I've got two pairs of sunglasses, will those work?"

Kitty nodded. "It's gonna get pretty dusty and we wouldn't want anything in our eyes. The enemy will have dust everywhere, though, and that will leave them defensless momentarily."

Niah nodded and handed Kitty a pair, sliding her pair on. "When did you become so smart with tactics?"

Kitty shrugged and handed Niah a bomb. "I skim through Seph's notes occasionally. He keeps them in a notebook and written in code. Once I figured out the code, they were actually pretty simple. He may be a professional tactian, but his battle plans are actually pretty simple. I guess everyone is too lazy to think them up. I could think them up myself at two in the morning."

Niah laughed and set the bomb down in the middle of one of the doors. "That is pretty sad. I can't wait to tell the others."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You do that and see how many people believe you. Now, push the green button and hide behind something."

Niah nodded and pushed the button. It started beeping and Niah ran to hide behind some rocks. The bombs exploded, blasting the doors down. Sure enough, dust filled the area and Niah was glad she had sunglasses to protect her eyes.

She heard some coughing and saw some copies come out the building. She silently ran over to them and quickly killed them with her daggers. She heard low growling behind her and turned to see a fiend. She saw a small blue run past her and it fell to the ground, electrocuted.

Kitty stood with her back against Niah's. "I'll handle the fiends. You take care of the copies."

Niah nodded, her eyes looking through the dust. "Got it."

The two broke apart and began taking care of their designated targets. Niah flipped, throwing her chakrams with her ankles and stabbing with her punching dagger. Kitty climbed up and onto a rafter. She held her staff like a gun with the closed rose bud against her shoulder and shot large icicles from the other end.

Eventually, the dust settled and all the copies and fiends had fallen. Kitty scanned the part of the factory she could see. "We got them all! Let's find Zack and Tseng before they have heart attacks."

The two wandered for a while, checking behind every closed door. Eventually, they heard a voice say, "'Infinite in myster is the gift of the foddess. We seek it thus, and take to the sky. Ripples form on the water's circle. The wandering soul knows no rest'. Settle down, Zack the Puppy."

Zack glared at Genesis. Tseng ran over to a tank and peered inside. Another copy. "The grave at the house. We found the remains of our people there as well."

Genesis smoothly said, "It didn't take much to have them send false reports. Just some mild threats..."

Zack stepped forward and said, "They would have done that anyway. At least your parents would have."

Genesis stood and said, "My 'parents' betrayed me. They had always betrayed me, from the very beginning. What do you know? Shinra lapdogs!" His fist turned red and he shot a fireball at them.

Kitty saw it coming and lunged forward, casting a small Protect on herself. The fireball hit the shield, but caught part of her leg. She fell to the ground, glaring at Genesis.

Zack drew his sword to attack Genesis, but Angeal appeared in front of him. Genesis spread his arms out. "Welcome, partner."

Niah silently made her way to Kitty. "I think we should just stay quiet for the moment."

Kitty only glared at Genesis. Angeal pointed Zack's sword at Genesis, dead silent. "I see," the red-haired man said, "you've finally made your decision. I'll repect your wished old friend. However..." Genesis walked to stand beside Angeal. "Can you really live on that side?" before walking off.

Angeal turned to leave, but Zack darted towards him. "Angeal!"

Angeal shoved him away and stabbed the sword into the floor. He didn't say a word as he walked away. Kitty ignored her slightly tinged leg and stood, pouncing on Angeal. He heard her coming and turned, shoving her into a board.

Her vision blurred as he walked away. "Don't go, Papa..." She fell limp and Tseng rushed over to her, checking her vitals.

"She has a concussion. I will take her back to the helicopter."

Zack nodded and Niah stood beside him. Tseng lifted Kitty and began to carry her out. Zack grabbed his sword and chased after Angeal. Niah followed him closely, not wanting him to do something stupid.

"Dammit! Where did he go?!"

Niah glanced at the doors they didn't blast off. "Did he leave the factory?"

They opened the door and two fiends appeared. Before they could attack, they heard two gunshots and the fiends fell. Tsend stood there, holding Kitty in one arm and his gun in his right hand. "We must get out of here quickly."

Zack shook his head. "We're not going to look for those two?"

"All evidence of misconduct must be erased. Company rules. An airstrike will neutralize this town. Are you sure that nobody is at Angeal's house?"

Niah nodded. "His mother. I'll take Kitty. You handle these guys." Tseng handed Kitty to Niah and held out his gun as more fiends appeared.

Zack and Niah ran towards Angeal's home. Any fiends or copies that appeared, Zack took care of. He got a call from Tseng saying that the airstrike was about to commence, but he got them to delay for a moment.. They hurried to the house and slammed the door open.

Zack stopped dead in his tracks and his arms dropped to his sides. Niah looked past him and gasped. Gillian Hewley was dead on the floor. Zack turned and saw Angeal, holding his Buster Sword.

Zack ran to Angeal, grabbing him and slamming the larger man against the wall. "What the hell did you do, Angeal!?" He shoved the man against the door and punched him. Angeal fell outside the house and onto the ground. "Is that... It that you idea of honor!?"

Angeal slowly got to his feet. "My mother... could not continue to live. And neither can the son."

Zack shook his head rapidly. "What are you talking about! What's going on here?"

"I told you." And cue red-haired asshole. "You can't live on that side anymore."

Angeal placed his sword on his back and turned, walking away. Zack chased after him, shouting, "Angeal!" but Genesis tripped him.

"'My friend, do you fly away now? To a world that abhors you and I? All that awaits you is a somber morrow. No matter where the winds may blow'. I don't see Sephiroth today, but... are you game?" He summoned Bahamut and sat back. Inside, Niah placed Kitty on the floor and helped Zack.

Bahamit stepped on them and flew up to dodge their attacks before dive bombing them with his sharp claws. Niah threw her posion-tainted chakrams to poisoin the summon. The summon reverted back into a materia ball and Zack held it in his fist.

"Summons aren't meant to be used like this! What happened to dreams and honor?"

Niah nodded. "What about your family? We may give each other hell all the time, but we are still a family!"

"We are monsters." Genesis held his left hand to his forehead before swinging it out. A single, long, black wing appeared out of his left shoulder blade. We have neither dreams nor honor. That includes family."

He flew up, leaving them quickly. Zack watched as black feathers floated down. He caught one and said, gripping it tightly, "SOLDIER doesn't mean monster."

Zack grabbed Kitty and he ran towards the helicopter. Niah was already ahead of him, waiting inside it. Zack turned and watched as the Banora trees burned. One apple held strong, but it shrivled and turned black before dropping to the ground.

"Angeal..."


	15. Chapter 15

"Angeal, the war is over. Everyone's real happy. As for us? Not so much. Where did you go?" His phone rang, interuppting his little monolouge. "Zack here."

"It's been a while, Zack."

"Sephiroth?"

"Come to Lazard's room in ten."

"Alright."

He pocketed his phone and decided since he had a few minutes, he would go check on the others. Ever since Banora, Kitty and Angel were both a whole lot more emotional. The second Kitty awoke and found herself in a hospital bed, she stood and found Angel. Once finding Angel, Kitty had collapsed into her arms and began crying her heart out.

Angel did not allow herself to cry in front of Kitty. She needed to be strong for Kitty. Her head injury healed quickly and required next to no medical attention. The only reason she was in the infirmary was so she could be easily monitored. Kitty eventually passed out and Angel carried her back to Angel's apartment. It no longer belonged to Angeal.

Of course, Angel left everything where it was. She didn't touch Angeal's side of the dresser unless she wanted to wear one of his shirts. They still smelled like him, after all. Angel was strong around the others, but when the door closed and the lights went out, she let it all out. She was thankful the walls were next to soundproof, becuase she screamed with everything her heart could handle and then some.

Niah still trained Cloud, but she merely gave him simple intructions to follow. He was slowly getting better, but he also felt her pain. He may not have known Angeal for very long, but he knew the man was a good man and would never turn his back on his family. Cloud often questioned why Angeal would leave and knew there had to be a logical reason for Angeal to leave.

Sephiroth just flat-out stopped seeing people. Even Kitty couldn't get to him. He had sealed the vent to his office and apartment so she couldn't climb in that way. Hearing from Sephiroth was a miracle in itself. So, Zack getting a call from him must mean something important was going to happen. Or he was shirking off his duties again.

Zack walked through the halls and saw Kitty hugging Angel tightly. He could hear her sobs. Kitty was sitting on the floor, but still had her arms tightly wound around Angel. Angel sat in front of her, hugging her tightly. Angel had her eyes closed, but Zack knew she was fully aware of her surroundings. The two females could often be found like this. Even at night, Zack had to comfort Kitty until she fell asleep due to exhaustion. Kitty was extremely emotional and had breakdowns frequently.

Zack crouched beside them and wrapped his arms around them both, not saying a word. He pulleld them close to his chest, hugging them tightly. Sometimes, a hug was enough when words no longer fit.

He stayed like that and saw Cloud and Niah appear in front of him. Niah sat and wrapped her arms around Kitty. Cloud moved so he was between Angel and Niah and hugged the two. The five simply stayed like that until Zack's phone dinged.

He checked it and saw a text from Sephiroth.

 _Hurry up - S_

 _Can I bring the rest of the family? - Z_

 _Of course. Be quick about it. - S_

Zack slid his phone into a pocket and stood. "Seph wants to see us in Lazard's room."

Kitty glanced up at Zack. "Shiny?"

Zack nodded. "Yes, Shiny wants to see us all, Kitten."

Kitty gave a small smile and tugged on Angel's hand as she stood. "Let's go see Shiny, Sissy."

They all stood and Cloud gave Kitty a brief hug, walking beside her. "How have you been, Kitty? You don't smile nearly as much as you used to."

Kitty shrugged. "I guess with everything happening so fast, I just can't find the heart to smile like I used to."

Cloud sighed. "You'll find it again. I know you will."

Kitty gave him a hug. "Thanks, Choco."

He rolled his eyes at the nickname. Secretly, he was fond of it though. He simply would never tell her that or admit it aloud. Hence the word secretly.

They arrived at Lazard's room and saw Sephiroth leaning against a table. He glanced up as they walked in, but didn't say anything. Kitty and Angel walked over to Sephiroth and Niah and Cloud just sorta stood to the side.

Zack walked to Lazard, who turned in his chair to face them. "Congratulations. As of this moment, you're promoted to SOLDIER First Class."

Kitty overheard and walked over to hug Zack, kissing his cheek. Zack rubbed the top of her head. "Huh. I thought I'd be happier."

Lazard nodded. "Understandable. Too much happened too fast. Zack, I'm afraid I need your assistance again."

Angel glanced at Sephiroth. "Are you pushing another assignment on the pup?"

Sephiroth simply sighed and said, "My apologies."

Zack crossed his arms. "Whatever."

Lazard started, "I'll fill you in on the assignment, but before that... Go to the briefing room and change into a SOLDIER First Class uniform."

Zack nodded and turned to leave. Cloud followed him, high fiving the taller male. Zack found the black uniform and changed. Cloud blinked, looking at Zack. "So, how do I look?"

Cloud only hoped his next comment wouldn't offend him. "You look like a smaller Angeal, but with spiky hair."

Zack returned to Lazard's room. Angel looked at him and left the room, hanging her head. Kitty noticed and followed her out. Zack stepped in front of Lazard's desk.

Lazard nodded appreciativly. "The company has decided to eliminate Genesis and his cohorts. This includes Angeal as well."

Niah loudly said, "Hell no! We are not killing Angeal." Sephiroth silenced her with a glare. "Bring it, Sephiroth. This company babies you anyway."

Zack ignored them. "You want me to do it?"

"No. The Shin-Ra army will handle it."

"What about me?"

"They don't trust you."

Zack shook his head lowly. Sephiroth ignored Niah and walked behind Zack to say, "They believe your emotions will hamper your judgment."

"Well, of course!"

Niah 'quietly' asked, "Then why the hell are we here?" Cloud put his arm around her and hugged her blose to him.

Sephiroth turned to Zack. "That's why I'm going too."

Zack stood and turned to Sephiroth. "To kill them?"

There was only silence until what sounded like an explosion went off and then the alarms started blaring.

Lazard quickly said, "An intruder."

"Where?" Zack asked.

"Close. Sephiroth, the president. Zack and Niah, entrance. Cloud, follow them as back up."

Zack ran out the room with Niah on his tail. He realized that Kitty and Angel were no where to be seen and cursed. He turned to Niah and Cloud. "Do you know where Kitty and Angel went?"

Niah shook her head. "No. Once you came in with your new outfit on, Angel left and the Kitty followed. We can look for them while you help at the entrance."

Zack nodded. "Alright. Once you find them, bring them to the entrance. I don't care how."

Niah raised an eyebrow. "Somebody's already starting to sound like a First. Congrats. Let's go, Cloud."

Cloud nodded and followed Niah as she ran in the opposite direction of Zack. Zack took the elevator down, but it stopped on the 49th floor. A researcher stood beside the elevator. "SOLDIER! Thank goodness! Please, do something about... THAT... quickly!"

Zack looked over and saw little robots swarming towards them. Each one had an anteanna that shot off sparks. Zack quickly destroyed the little robots, earning a few shocks in the process.

"What was that?"

The researcher asked, "You've never seen one before? That was a Shinra Building intruder neutralization mech."

Zack gave him an odd look. "Intruder neutralization? So why was it attacking Shinra staff?"

"It just suddenly went out of control. They're stationed in other areas, too. Can you go check on them?"

"Lazard told me to go to the entrance, but I'd better make sure everyone is alright."

He found six more circling two Shinra staff members. He told them to move out the way before destroying the robots. He found a Third laying on the floor who said, "Behind you," before more appeared.

He briefly spoke to Lazard, who told him the building had been compromised. He went to the entrance and saw Shinra wepons attacking the building. He was about to charge when a blur went through them, slicing them all down to bits. A few more robots apppeared and several fireballs quickly incinerated them.

The blur stopped and Zack saw Angel. He heard a smal grunt from beside him and turned to see Kitty. "What are you two doing down here?"

Kitty grinned. "Well, we heard a commotion and came down here."

Angel nodded and set her two Buster Swords in the ground, leaning on one. "Kitty could smell the explosion before it even happened. We got the secretaries hiding in a safe place and then a hole was blasted in. We've been holding our ground since. It's these stupid Genesis copies."

They heard Sephiroth say, "Hollander must be behind this."

They turned and saw Sephiroth walking towards them. Zack cocked his head to the side. "Who's that?"

"A Shinra scientist who vanished after lifting the copy technology." Sephiroth stood beside Kitty and eyed her for any wounds before scanning over Angel.

Zack thought for a moment. "Are you saying that this Hollander and Genesis are working together?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Perhaps."

"What is it that they're after...?"

"Hollander lost his bid for leadership of the Science Department. He has borne a grudge against Shinra ever since. Revenge is most likely his objective."

Zack shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. "That's just petty. Are you telling me that Genesis is supporting that idiotic cause?"

Angel kindly piped in, "Genesis is an idiot himself." Kitty nodded and rubbed her head in memory. She quietly said, "He tainted our family."

Sephiroth sighed and looked down. "I would prefer not to believe it, but..."

Zack stood straight. "Then don't believe it!"

"Very well, I won't."

Angel and Kitty had the same thought, 'I will. Genesis is an ass.'

"Now, Genesis copies have been sighted in Sector 8 as well. Let's go."

The four ran to Sector 8 and saw more machines chasing people around the fountain. Kitty blinked in suprise. "That's a lot."

Angel nodded and Sephiroth said, "We should split up. Angel, you -"

Angel cut him off, saying, "Kitty will take the rooftops. I'll go with Zack. Even though he's now a First, he still needs some learning."

Zack rolled his eyes, but followed her down LOVELESS Avenue.

Sephiroth nodded. Kitty sighed and looked at Sephiroth. "How far can you throw?"

"Come over here and you will see."

Kitty stood facing him until he turned her around and picked her up. He moved her so her feet were in each of his hands. He threw her and she sailed through the air. She rolled as she landed on the roof of the nearest building. She glanced down and saw Sephiroth running in the opposite direction of Angel and Zack.

She aimed her staff and shot fireballs at the robots, preparing herself for a long night.

Zack and Angel saw a girl with orange-red hair being cornered by a two Genesis copies. "Hold on, I'm a-comin!" He grabbed his sword and ran forward, but an electrod stopped him. He looked over and saw Reno.

"Sector 8 is Turks jurisdiction, Slick."

Rude walked up to stand on Zack's other side. He nodded at Angel - his version of waving. Angel nodded back and saw Tseng walk towards them.

Zack turned and said, "Come on! Tseng, do something!"

Rude said, "There's no need for concern."

Zack turned to look at the girl. "Huh?" Apparently, she had defeated her attackers with a shuriken. "Okay..."

Tseng glanced at the two Turks. "The other areas?"

Reno sighed. "Midgar's just crawling with nasties."

Reno continued, "SOLDIER is having difficulties."

Tseng nodded once. "Reno, Rude go."

"You got it."

The two ran off, Reno chuckling. Angel glanced at Tseng. "So, we're asking for help from Turks now?"

The girl walked next to them. "SOLDIER's being stingy."

Zack sighed, "There's a manpower shortage - huh? You're a Turk too?"

She nodded. "I'm Cissnei."

Zack turned to her. "I'm Zack, pleasure to meet ya."

Angel slapped the back of his head. "I'm Angel. Don't forget you have a girlfriend, Zack. Plus, we're on an assignment."

Zack scratched the back of his head, looking at Tseng. "We've got the same objective. Need some help here?"

Tseng started, "I'd appreciate the offer, but -"

Cissnei cut him off. "Oh, how generous! Well, I gotta go. See ya." She winked at Zack before running off.

Angel rolled her eyes. "Alright, lover boy, let's go. Remember, Kitty could be watching us right now."

Zack and Angel headed down the street, looking down allyways and defeating enemies. A few citizens handed them some items in thanks before running inside. They ran down the street, spotting a man that eerily looked similar to Genesis, but he had two large guns with him.

They fight him easily enough, taking minimal damage. He lay on the ground before standing and a black wing appeared. Zack quickly ran and sliced the man down.

Cissnei walked over and crouched near the wing. "When I was a kid, I always wanted to have wings. You know, like an angel."

Zack hung his head. "If people had wings, they'd be monsters."

Angel glared at him, but stayed silent. Cissnei stood and said, "Wings symbolize freedom for those who have none. They don't symbolize monsters."

They heard yelling from a rooftop saying, "I've got a tail! Am I a monster?!"

Angel looked up and saw Niah standing beside Kitty. Kitty nodded. "I've got ears! And I sure as hell ain't a monster!"

Zack sighed. "Alright! Having extra parts doesn't make you a monster! Got it!"

He glanced at Angel, who was nodding. His phone rang and he flipped it open, hearing Sephiroth say, "Once Sector 8 is clear, come to Mako Reactor 5."

Zack quickly asked, "Did you find something out?"

"Angeal has been sighted."

Zack grunted. "So, it's search and destroy?"

"The army is mobilizing, but there's still time. We will find them before they do, and..."

"And WHAT?!"

Sephiroth pulled the phone away from his ear for a moment. "... fail to eliminate them."

Zack is suddenly happy. "For real?"

Sephiroth chuckled. "Yes, for real."

"Excellent! Probably!"

Sephiroth hung up and continued walking on the catwalk in the Reactor. Zack pocketed his phone, turning around to Angel happily. Kitty and Niah were on the ground.

Zack grinned from ear to ear. "We're going to find Angeal and Genesis and fail to eliminate them! Isn't that great? Sort of."

Angel and Kitty looked confused. They had missed the part about Lazard telling them that Angeal was going to be killled. Genesis, they didn't mind his death so much. Kitty cautiously asked, "Who said we were going to kill Angeal in the first place?"

Zack's smile dropped. Niah decided to explain. "Lazard told us that the army is going to take care of Genesis and all of his cohorts. Our job is to find and capture them if possible unless we can do the job ourselves."

Kitty's eyes widened to saucers. All expression left Angel, leaving her with a blank stare. Kitty shook her head violently. "No. I won't let anyone touch Angeal! I'm going to change those orders and let Angeal back! He's coming home with us and Angel will have her man back! I'll fight the whole entire goddamned army myself if I have to! You all know I will! I'll kill whoever I have to to get Angeal back in that damned ShinRa building and into our fucked up family again!"

Before she could rant anymore, Angel knocked her out. Angel placed her swords on her back and lifted Kitty. She looked at Zack. "Where are we headed next?"

Zack glanced at Kitty. "We're heading to Mako Reactor 5 after clearing Midgar. You coming, Niah?"

Niah shook her head. "I'll handle the uglies here. You get to Seph. I can't let my Chocobo get hurt. I know he's fighting around here somewhere..."

Angel looked to Zack. "Lead the way."

~Mako Reactor 5~

Kitty awoke and followed Angel silently. Her head was kept down and the only reason she didn't get lost was her tight grip on Angel's coat. A fiend dropped down and Zack quickly finished it off, looking at the back of it's head. On the back of his head, was Angeal's face.

"Is that Angeal's face?"

They heard Sephiroth walking towards them. "It appears Genesis isn't the only one who can be copied." Zack looked up at him as he walked by. "The company training room..."

Zack tilted his head to the side. "Hm?"

"We used to sneak in there for fun, when the Seconds were out or we needed to vent. Genesis, Angeal, and I."

Zack nodded as Angel said, "You guys were pretty close."

Sephiroth looked down. "I wonder..."

 **(Right here is the Angeal x Genesis vs Sephiroth fight. Go look it up if you want to watch it cause I ain't writing it out.)**

"So, was everything alright?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Yes, as far as Genesis was concerned. But, as for Angeal..."

Zack looked at Sephiroth. "Angeal? What happened?"

Sephiroth let a small smile grace him. "Later, I received one of his famous lectures."

Kitty nodded. "I can't count how many lectures I got."

Angel piped up and said, "You got at least twenty every week. I think you hold the record."

Zack rolled his eyes at the two females. "So, you got the honor and dreams lecture?"

Sephiroth nodded and walked over to the fiend with Angeal's face on it. "So it's true... they're in league with Hollander."

Angel leaned over the railing a little. "How the hell could this happen?"

Sephiroth walked off, leaving them. "We should split up and look for clues on Angeal."

Kitty nodded. "Se you later, Seph."

Sephiroth missed the nickname 'Shiny' already. He kept walking, not going to correct her for now.

The three walked along, climbing ladders and fighting fiends. They found an odd looking machine with something you turn on it. Zack turned it and the large pipes lit up in a sort of pattern.

Above them, Sephiroth was standing in front a door with a 7 on it. The red light above it flipped to green.

Kitty wandered ahead of the group, looking around. She was currently on lookout for fiends or anything they could use. Angel and Zack took care of the close fiends while Kitty handled the flyers. They were all relatively weak, so they were mostly walking while shooting a bolt of lightning or swinging a sword.

Finally, she spotted Sephiroth still standing in front of the door. Sephiroth turned and said, "The power has been restored. Let's go."

Kitty walked behind Sephiroth, one hand gripping his coat. Her ears kept turning and twisting on her head, keeping vigilant for any noise. Angel and Zack understood what she was doing and kept as silent as posible.

They eventually came to a room with some machines in them. On the opposite wall was a large 4.

Sephiroth walked over to the mako tub. He glanced inside and said, "A wretched sight..."

Kitty glanced up and made a face, walking over to stand beside Angel. Angel was looking over the papers on the table, her eyes taking in everything. "Hey, Seph. Come and look at this."

Sephiroth picked up a book and began reading it. Zack walked across the room and picked up a piece of paper titled 'Degradation'

It read, _The heightened ablities of SOLDIER members are maintained by a delicate balance of various genetic factors. A change in this balance could only be caused by a 'leak' of genetic information, but this is not possible under normal circumstances. This phenomnenon is unique to the SOLDIER Type G._

Zack held a hand to his forehead. "I'm feeling woozy."

Instantly, Kitty was by his side and feeling his neck and face. Sephiroth walked over and said, "It was before Genesis deserted. The wound he gained was superficial. But for some reason, Genesis wasn't healing. The man who treated him was..."

Angel acidly spat, "Hollander. I'm starting to hate him, too."

Sephiroth nodded and looked down. "Why couldn't I be the donor? He needed a blood transfusion." Sephiroth looked at the mako tub. "A SOLDIER Type G..."

Kitty said nothing and hugged Sephiroth. He patted her back softly before walking over to the table with all the notes on it. "These are... highly confidential research documents that Hollander stole. The stolen documents were in regard to 'Project G,' 'Degradation,' and 'Ancients.' Some of them may have been left here. Search this area carefully."

The three split up and began searching.

Kitty found one titled 'Project G - Summary'

 _Objective: Implant the cells of an Ancient into a human fetus to imbue said fetus with the Ancient's ablities._

Kitty slouched and groaned a little. Sephiroth looked up at her and said, "It was Hollander's experiment. The result was a normal child. Which meant he failed. However..."

Angel found one titled 'The Ancients Project - Outline'

 _It is now an undisputed fact that the life form excavated from the earth is indeed of the ancient race spoken of in legend. Furthermore, history records that these 'Ancients' channeled the power of this planet to tear the earth asunder. Using the cells of the unearthed Ancient, we have begun research on creating and mass-prodcing a race with comparable ablities. The primary objective of this research is to significantly reduce mako excavation costs._

Sephiroth spoke again, "Project G gave birth to the man we know as Genesis."

Zack slowly said, "Project G."

"Project Genesis. Contrary to this report, Genesis showed clear signs of change."

"Degrading?"

"Not only that."

"Copies?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Abominations."

Kitty's head snapped up and she saw a man with graying hair and a thick beard come down the stairs. He wore a yellow shirt and brown pants with a white lab coat over it. He looked up in shock at Sephiroth. "S-Sephiroth?"

Sephiroth looked up. "Hollander."

Kitty's eyes flashed an angry green and before she could pounce on the man, Angel wrapped one arm around her and covered her mouth. She quietly said, "This is not the time. You can get your revenge when I get mine."

Kitty kept her narrowed eyes on Hollander. Sephiroth glanced at her. "I thought I'd find you here."

Hollander spoke, "The degradation process... only I can stop it."

Genesis swooped down, his one black wing showing. He held his red sword in his right hand.

Angel growled out, "Genesis."

Genesis pointed his sword at Sephiroth. "You won't take Hollander."

Sephiroth turned to the girls. "Go after Hollander! You too, Zack!"

Angel glared at Genesis and she ran past him with Zack and Kitty on her heels. Genesis let them run by and set his sword down, walking closer to Sephiroth. "'There is no hate, only joy. For you are beloved by the goddess. Hero of the dawn, Healer of worlds.'"

Sephiroth did not look at Genesis. "LOVELESS again? You never change. Except for becoming an ass as Kitty and Angel say."

Genesis ignored the last coment. "Three friends go into battle. One is captured, one flies away, the one that is left becomes a hero."

"A common story."

"If we were to enact it, would I be the one to play the hero, or would you?"

"It's all yours."

"Indeed. After all, your glory should have been mine."

"How petty."

"In hindsight, perhaps. Now, what I want most is the 'gift of the goddess'."

Sephiroth turned to glare at Genesis.

The three chased after Hollander, running. For an older fella, Hollander should could run. Kitty panted almost comically. "I.. haven't run... since Wutai."

Genesis copies slowed their pursuit, but they kept running through the maze of a hallway. Zack and Angel both got posioned a few times, but Kitty kept them in top shape with simple healing spells.

Kitty tripped as they ran down a flight of stairs, but rolled into a standinng position. Hollander was starting to tire out, but they were stopped by a dozen or so copies.

They finally came to a more open area, but three robots stopped them. One had chainsaws for hands. The second's head was a missile launcher. The third was the biggest and had sparks shooting out of it. Angel handled the first, Zack got the second, and Kitty got the biggest. The robots went down quickly.

Hollander tripped and crawled backwards as Zack approached him. "Hollander, do you understand what you're doing?"

Hollander passed by a pillar and before Zack could continue, a Buster Sword stopped him. Hollander took the chance to run off.

Zack asked, "Working for Hollander now? What is it you're after?"

Kitty's eyes filled with tears as Angeal came into view. "World domination."

"That's not even funny, man."

"How about... revenge?"

"For what?"

Angel piped up as she held Kitty to her. "How about kicking Genesis' ass for tearing us apart."

Angeal kept his eyes trained forward. He knew if he saw Kitty crying, he would melt. He walked forward a few steps away from them. Two white wings sprouted from his back on the right side. The first was large and the second was right underneath it, a lot smaller.

"I've become.. a monster. A monster's objective is usually world domination or revenge."

Kitty gasped and turned to Angeal. She stalked over to the large male and turned him to face her. He showed no emotion as tears continued to run down her cheeks. She spoke, her voice breaking slightly, "Do these ears make me a monster?"

Angeal showed a little surprise. "No. You're too kind."

She nodded. "Then you're not either." Kitty reached a shaking hand behind him and petted the large wing. "These are angel's wings."

Angeal nodded. "I see. Then what should an angel fight for, Kitty? What do angels dream of!?"

Kitty backed up and felt Zack's arms wrap around her. Angel noticed the fear swimming in her eyes as Angeal stalked towards the two. Zack and Kitty backed away. "Angeal..."

"Angels dream of one thing. To be human."

He rushed towards the two and punched them, making them fly back onto a grate. Angel rushed to Kitty, who had taken the brunt of the damage. She lifted Kitty's shirt and saw a welt forming.

Zack stood in front of the two, fists raised before he dropped them. Angeal angrily yelled, "Defend yourself!"

Zack shook his head. Angeal growled and a flame covered his fist. He punched the ground and it traveled to the grate they were standing on. It collapsed and they fell down the hole.


	16. Chapter 16

Zack awoke to someone saying, "Hellooo," to him repeatedly. He looked up and saw Aerith leaning over him. "Hooray! You finally woke up!"

He blinked in suprise as she was shoved away from him and Kitty took her place. "It's about damn time you woke up. Angel's still out for the moment, but when she wakes up she is gonna be _pissed_."

He stood and shook the fogginess out of his head. He leaned down and grabbed the hem of her shirt, lifting it to where Angeal had punched her. Sure enough, there was a bruise there. Kitty turned red and pulled her shirt back down.

"It's just a flesh wound. There's nothing cracked or ruptured. It'll heal on its own."

Zack glared at the ground. "Why, Angeal?"

Kitty hugged him unexpectedly. "He's confused right now. He just needs a good ass kicking and he'll be back to normal. First, we've gotta get back to HQ and tell whoever that Angeal shouldn't be killed. Where are we, anyway?"

Aerith walked over to them, but kept her distance. "Church in the slums. You fell through the roof."

They turned and heard groaning. Kitty darted over to Angel and grabbed her hand. Angel silently stood and glared up at the hole they fell through. She shook with anger and the only thing keeping her from destroying the church was Kitty's death grip.

Kitty looked at Angel before turning to Aerith. "Could you lead us out of here? You don't have to take us far?"

Aerith nodded. "Sure. Just follow me. If you walk a little toward the central slums, you can go above the plate."

They walked out the church and suddenly their phones dinged. The three SOLDIERS looked and saw a text from the company.

It read, _Effective today, Kitty and Zack Fair have been promoted to SOLDIER First Class. Angel has been promoted to Commander._

They nodded and pocketed their phones. Kitty grinned at Angel. "Sissy's a Commander now. And nobody is longer a Second. Cloud isn't even Third yet, so he's not included."

Zack grinned and tossed his arm around Kitty's shoulders. "We should throw a party to celebrate. It'll lighten the mood, too."

Angel nodded. "That sounds nice enough."

Aerith led them to the marketplace. They walked in relative silence to the center of the marketplace. She told them that was the easiest way to the top plate.

Zack nodded. "Thanks, Aerith."

Aerith smiled up at him. "It's nothing, really. Well, see you later."

Zack's phone rang, interrupting any more conversation. He picked it up and heard Sephiroth say, "Get to the ShinRa building now. Genesis has attacked us." before hanging up.

Zack pocketed his phone and relayred the message. Angel glared and Kitty stomped angrily. "Let's go and kick his ass!"

Aerith blinked. "Alright. See you later."

The three SOLDIERS departed and went up the elevator. Sure enough, half of Midgar was smoking and the ShinRa building was looking a little worse.

Zack growled angrily. "Damn you, Genesis. What's the matter with you!?"

Kitty shrugged almost nonchalantly, walking past him. "Maybe he's on his period."

Angel smirked, walking beside her. "Or maybe he needs a good ass-kicking."

They ran along the empty streets. A few winged Genesis copies tried to stop them, but they barely slowed down any. Two mechs tried to stop them, but only succeded in slowing them a bit. More copies and a relativly intimidating mech showed up and slowed them down.

They ran past and Kitty spotted movement from behind a sign. They stopped and held out their weapons. Angeal floated down from behind it. He landed in front of them and said, "I need your help."

Kitty smiled and Angel grabbed her wrist to keep her in place. Zack asked, "Do you? Honestly, what are you thinking, Angeal?"

"I'm not... really sure myself. At times I feel as if my mind is mired in fog. But, no matter what happens, I have to protect my honor and family. As long as I hold the Buster Sword. Join my battle. Our enemy is all that creates suffering."

Zack nodded. "All right... I'll help you."

Kitty and Angel both nodded and simultaneously said, "Don't forget us!"

Zack turned around and saw Angeal missing. Along with Angel and Kitty. A white feather floated down and an arm wrapped around his midsection.

Zack looked up and saw Angeal holding him up. Angel was in his other arm and Kitty had her arms around his neck. Angeal chuckled as Zack strugggled uselessly for a moment.

"Flying feels... pretty good."

Angeal flew them to the ShinRa buiding and set Angel and Zack down. Kitty spottted Sephiroth finishing off some copies with minor spells. Angeal landed near Sephiroth and Kitty hugged the silver-haired male.

Sephiroth looked at Zack as the younger male said, "Sorry to keep you waiting."

Sephiroth nodded. "You're late."

Angeal gave Sephiroth a once-over. "Sephiroth, have you lost weight?"

"Humph."

"Anyway, on to business. It's safe to assume Hollander has ordered Genesis to eliminate Hojo."

Angel blinked rapidly. "Oh hell no is he getting to Hojo first. C'mon, Kitty. We'll find Niah and make sure Cloud's safe before heading that way." Angel gave Angeal a tight and brief hug before running off.

Zack quickly hugged Kitty before the girl climbed into the vents. Angeal continued, "He believes Hojo robbed him of his rightful position."

Zack nodded. "Then they'll be targeting the Science Department floor upstairs."

Sephiroth shook his head. "Forget about Hojo."

Angeal smiled a little and shook his head as Sephiroth walked off. "I see you're in your usual mood. Sephiroth, take the floors below. I'll handle things outside. Zack, you go up. Hojo will be your responsibility."

Zack nodded. "Understood!" He ran down some halls with next to no trouble. "I don't know what Angeal's thinking or planning. But, we're fighting side by side again, and that's good enough for me. All right, the Science Department is... down this way."

He ran through the 67th floor and fought the copies and mechs that attempted to slow him. He tried all the doors and found them all locked. He found a large lab-like room and an elevator. It was still working, surprising him.

Zack ran out the elevator and saw Hojo standing in front of a monitor. He spotted Angel, Kitty, and Niah hiding in the shadows, staying silent. "Ah, you're safe."

Hojo shushed him. "Shush! Keep your voice down."

Zack ignored him. "The building is under attack by the Genesis army. They may be after you, Professor Hojo."

Hojo set his clipboard down and said, "And you're my protection? Along with the three females in the shadows over there?"

Niah loudly cursed. "Dammit! I thought you said he wouldn't be able to see us over here."

Kitty shrugged. "I said we would be hidden, not unseen."

Zack sighed as the three walked over to lean against a machine. Kitty sat down and leaned against Angel's legs. "In any case, we have to evacuate. Will you come with me?"

Hojo cackled. "Degrading monsters are nothing to fear."

Niah looked up and loudly said, "The red-headed poetry idiot?"

Hojo nodded. "Yes. A memento from an unenlightened era, when man could deem any unclassified life form an Ancient."

Zack cocked his head to the side. "Unclassified life form?"

"Jenova. The calamity that fell from the sky."

"Uhh..."

"Your ignorance is of no consequence. SOLDIER's duty is not to think - it is to protect men who think for them, like me."

Kitty loudly hissed and Angel and Niah grabbed her arms to hold her back. Her ears flattened and she hissed out, "I can think on my own, you -"

Angel quickly slapped her hand over Kitty's mouth. Niah looked at Angel questioningly. "Why did you cover her mouth?"

Angel simply uncovered Kitty's mouth and let the curses flow before covering it again. Niah nodded in understanding.

Hojo looked up as a black feather floated down. "Well, look who's here!" Angel growled as Genesis pointed his sword at Hojo. "Hollander sent you? You think that if you obey Hollander, he'll stop your body from degrading. It that it? Pitiful... just pitiful, I say."

Zack ran over to Genesis and grabbed his own sword from his back, pointing it at Genesis. "Genesis!"

Hojo cackled once more. "A second-rate hack like Hollander couldn't cure a cold!"

Angeal entered the room and stiffly said, "Genesis, that's enough!"

Hojo interuppted. "Ah, what do we have here?"

Genesis quoted, "'My friend, the fates are cruel. There are no dreams, no honor remains. The arrow has left the bow of the goddess."

Once again, Hojo opens his big mouth. "The entire cast of Hollander's freak show!" Niah yelled, "Shut up, you!" but was ignored. "'LOVELESS' Act 4. Where the two friends challenge each other to a duel. An ancient epic."

They all looked at Hojo questionably. All of them were silently wondering why Hojo has read LOVELESS.

He answered their silent question. "I read it thinking it might aid my reasearch, but pure drivel."

Angeal turned to Hojo. "How does the duel end?"

"Unknown. The last act is missing, and yet to be discovered."

Genesis walked forward. "There are various theories." Genesis summoned a fireball and blew a hole in the wall. "The mysterious gift of the goddess. What is the meaning behind it? For us, at least."

Zack ran after Genesis, yelling at him to stop. Angeal flew after them, grabbing Zack and flying after Genesis.

The three females looked at each other before glancing at Hojo. Angel spoke first, "Yeah, I'm getting out of here before I kill him."

Kitty shrugged, following Angel and Niah into the elevator. "We can hijack a truck and follow them on the ground."

Niah nodded thoughtfully. "WIth all this Genesis stuff going on, nobody would notice if we took that one truck from the Exhibit. It looks pretty nice for an older truck."

~Time Skip~

Genesis floated down to the ground. "'My soul, corrupted by vengeance. Hath endured torment, to find the end of the journey in my own salvation. And your eternal slumber.'" He held a summon materia in his hand and the large symbol appeared.

Angeal held Zack with one arm and Zack said, "He's summoning again!"

Angeal floated down and set Zack down. "Zack, I leave this to you. You can do this, trust me."

Zack jumped up, but didn't get far. He yelled, "Don't leave me here! Stop! Come back!" Angeal drew Genesis away, clashing swords.

Zack watched as a truck pulled up, skidding to a stop in front of him. Kitty hopped out the driver's seat. "Hi! Sissy let Kitty drive!"

Angel stumbled out and said, "I am never letting you drive again unless we need a quick escape."

Niah nodded as she dramatically said, "I swear I'm almost dead."

Kitty shrugged as the Bahamut finished being summoned. "You lived. Plus, we took out at least ten Genesis copies."

Zack sighed, slumping slightly. "If you are done talking, can we take care of big boy here?"

Angel grinned and brandished her swords. "Of course. I've still got some bottled up anger."

Surprisingly, Bahamut was relatively easy to battle. Niah sighed sadly. "I was expecting more of a challenge."

Kitty nodded. "We didn't get a chance to play as much as we wanted to."

Angel nodded, agreeing with them. She looked around and slowly asked, "Where is everybody?" From their spot they could see the entire area around the ShinRa building and they still couldn't see any other human being. It was like a ghost town.


	17. Chapter 17

Zack sighed and closed his phone. He had been trying to call Sephiroth for a while now and Sephiroth never answered. Even Kitty had yet to speak to the male.

A Second named Luxiere asked, "Who are you trying to call?"

"Sephiroth. I haven't been able to reach him in ages."

"Haven't you heard? Mr. Sephiroth has shut himself inside the data room and hasn't come out. Handsets are prohibited in the data room, so there's not much you can do."

Zack crossed his arms, asking, "Data room?"

"He is apparently researching the history of the Shinra Science Department.'

"Oh..."

He wandered to his apartment and saw Kitty laying on the couch with her head in Angel's lap. Angel mindlessly petting her head and reading a book with her other hand. Kitty purred and looked like she was sleeping other than her bouncing foot.

Zack walked over and lifted Kitty's feet to sit down. He put them back on his lap and she opened an eye to glance at him. She sighed and looked at the ceiling. "I feel like I forgot to do something. Something important. Sissy, what was I planning on doing?"

Angel shrugged. "Have you taken your nap?"

"Yes. And slept in late."

Zack nodded. "Have you eaten food?"

"Yes. I ate actual food."

Zack shrugged and began mindlessly rubbing her bare feet. "Then, I don't know what you forgot to do. Anyway, ya wanna go see if Lazard has a mission or something?"

Kitty thought for a moment before quickly snapping her fingers and shouting, "That's what I was going to do! Talk to Lazard or the President about killing Angeal and Genesis!"

Angel piped up and said, "Mainly Angeal."

"Especially Angeal. Let's go. Right now."

Kitty grabbed Angel's hand and starting pulling her up. Angel marked the page and set the book down, following Kitty as she walked through the halls. Kitty walked into Lazard's office, straight to his desk.

Lazard glanced up and said, "Yes, what do you need? I'm quite busy at the moment."

Kitty quickly gained his attention by grabbing up the papers and making them scatter. "Why are you having Angeal killed?"

Lazard blinked and reached for his paperwork. "Orders from the president. I can't do anything about them, sadly."

Angel nodded and grabbed Kitty before she could run out and attack the president. "Slow down. Let's not kill the president and get killed."

Kitty grumbled and followed her. "I still get to yell and curse, right?"

Angel patted Kitty's head and said, "Of course you do."

Five minutes later, Angel was holding Kitty back as she hissed and cursed the president. The fat man was leaning back in his chair, slowly scooting away from the cat-eared girl. He eyed the door, wondering where his security was.

He finally said, "Alright! We won't kill Hewley!"

Kitty nodded and grinned victoriously. "Thank you. I don't care if you take him into custdy or whatever, but you change those orders from kill to take in. Whatever the term is. If I find a hair missing from my papa's head, I will march up here and kick your ass myself."

Angel rolled her eyes as Kitty skipped out the office. "She's serious, you know. Same goes for me, too. Except I will kill you. That's a promise."

The president gulped and watched her leave. A minute or two later, security finally came in. He sighed and sat back at his desk.

Zack watched Kitty skip towards him. She glomped him and said, "They won't kill Angeal no more."

Zack raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Angel walked towards them, smirking victoriously. "Add a point for the female SOLDIERs. Minus a point for fatass."

Zack rolled his eyes and saw Tseng walk towards them. "We need to go to Modeoheim. The chopper is already waiting for us. So, gather your team and head up there."

Kitty dialed Niah's number and said, "We have a mission, Ni-Ni. Cloud can come, too. We're going to some place called Modeoheim. Alright, meet you on the roof." She snapped it close and said to Zack and Angel, "Niah will be waiting for us on the roof."

Tseng sighed and quietly said, "I swear the girl has problems."

Kitty grinned widely. "I know I have problems, Tseng."

~Time Skip~

Zack groaned and stood up, looking around. One minute, he had been riding in the helicopter with Kitty in his lap with Angel sitting beside him and Niah sitting beside Cloud. The next, they were spinning out of control into the side of a mountain.

He saw Tseng stand up and check his phone. "No signal."

Zack sighed and shook his head. He walked around the flaming copter and saw Kitty with Angel. Angel had wrapped herself around Kitty protectively and Kitty was breathing heavily, eyes darting around.

Angel sat up and shook the snow off of her. "Kitty. Wake up."

Kitty slowly sat up. The drug wasn't ready to wear off yet and she was awake, forcing herself to fight the effects of the drug. She was hyperventilating and clinging to Angel's leg.

Niah groaned and saw a hand reaching for her. She took it and stood. "Thanks, Cloud. What's up with the Kitty-Cat?"

She slowly walked over and Kitty's eyes landed on her. She hissed and clung tighter to Angel's leg. Niah frowned and Angel sighed. "Ignore her. The drug was still in effect when she was awoken. The drug is actually still in effect and she's suffering the aftermath."

Niah stared worriedly at Kitty. Cloud asked, "What if you gave her another dose?"

"It's for sleep. If you give her too much, she won't wake up. Not for a long time, actually. And that's if it doesn't kill her. Too much will kill her and I'm not even risking that. She'll snap out of it soon once she goes back to sleep."

Angel slowly pried Kitty off her leg and placed her on her back. Kitty latched her arms and legs around her, not going to move. She quickly fell asleep, her grip never loosening. Zack stared sadly as Angel found her two Buster Swords and Kitty's staff.

Angel slid the staff through Kitty's simple holster on her back and held her two swords in hand. Niah dug out her two chakrams and slid them in place. Zack made sure he had his sword before starting to walk up the mountain.

Tseng nodded at him. "It's a good thing we have someone used to this terrain. We would've already reached Modeoheim if not for the delay. We should hurry and make up for lost time."

Zack shook his head, about to say something when Angel walked past him. "Let's hurry up. Since Kitty still doesn't have anything to cover her arms, she'll get cold easily and get sick."

Cloud and Niah soon caught up with Angel and Zack, their hands intertwined. Zack walked ahead of them, glancing back every now and then to make sure they were all there. Angel had no trouble carrying Kitty and her two swords, having done it before.

Angel glanced at Kitty worriedly. She should've awoken about two or three hours ago and was still asleep, shivering violently. Looking at the others, she noticed they were all cold and tired.

Niah's breath was puffing out clouds and she was under Cloud's arm, snuggled close to him as possible. Cloud was shivering himself and was starting to look as tired as Kitty was. Zack was being stubborn as hell and kept walking a good ten paces ahead, slaying any fiends they came across.

"Zack, we need to stop. We need to rest. I don't think Tseng has anything not frozen attached to him."

Tseng was twenty feet behind them, shivering more violently than Kitty was. His lips were blue and he looked plain miserable. "I agree. At first light, we move out."

Zack nodded and ran ahead, ignoring his own fatigue. He ran back, panting slightly. "There's a cave about twenty yards away. Think you can make it?"

Angel nodded and felt Kitty stirring on her back. The younger female slowly looked up, smacking her lips slightly. "Sorry, sis, I drooled on ya."

Angel rolled her eyes and Kitty stood on her own, swaying slightly. She blinked and shook her head quickly, standing straight. Angel placed the two swords on her back, rubbing her wrists slightly.

Kitty skipped ahead to Zack, kissing his cheek softly. He seemed to perk up by the simple action and hugged her tightly, lifting her off the ground. "I was worried you wouldn't wake up. Are you still cold?"

Kitty shook her head, despite her shaking body. "No, I'm fine. Honestly."

"Just say it if you're cold. Don't try to hide it. You make us worry when you do that."

Kitty nodded. "I am cold. Just a little bit though. Nothing to worry over."

Zack gave her a pointed look. "Says the girl that nearly shoves me off the bed because she gets cold easily and likes to snuggle."

Kitty grinned up at him before sneezing. "How much further is that cave?"

Zack sighed and hugged her tightly. "It's not too far. I think Tseng might have frozen his balls off though."

Kitty laughed. Depsite the fact she was obviously getting frostbite, she was doing surprisingly well. She kept up with Zack, once in a while darting forward to examine something shiny or to attack a fiend on her own.

Her magic reserves never seemed to run low when she used smaller spells. A couple of fiends would make her jump, but Niah would throw a chakram at it.

Eventually, they found themselves sitting in the cave and Kitty was lighting a small fire for them to gather around. Tseng practically sat on top the fire. They all had some minor frostbite, but a simple Cure fixed them up.

The next morning, Angel awoke to feel something heavy and furry lying over her. It was far too heavy to be Kitty and much more furrier. Opening her eyes, she noticed they were all sleeping under something furry.

She slowly crawled out from underneath it and followed the tail-shaped object. The tail was connected to a behemoth, who was sleeping heavily. She quickly awoke the others and they began to run out the cave.

Unfortunately, Cloud had fell over a branch and it snapped. The behemoth awoke and roared loudly. Niah pulled Cloud up and ran, pulling him along.

Zack laughed loudly. "Look at the bright side!"

Tseng glared at him. "What bright side?"

"He kept us warm."

Angel began to count heads as they ran. Double-checking, she saw they were one head short. "Where's Kitty?"

Her and Zack suddenly yelled out, "Oh shit!" before running back to the cave.

Kitty looked the behemoth in the eye. Apparently, the others had left her behind. She shrugged and curled up underneath the warm tail, confusing the behemoth.

Kitty felt two hands grab her arms and haul her up, running away from the cave. The behemoth stared in confusion before running after them, roaring. Angel twitched and handed Kitty to Zack. She turned to the behemoth and roared back at it. The behemoth stopped running and stared in shock.

Angel ran after the others and gave Kitty a pointed look. "You do not snuggle with behemoths, Kitty."

Kitty pouted. "He was warm though."

"You snuggle with Zack. Or me. Not behemoths."

"Humbaba?"

"Shut up."

Kitty pouted childishly and tugged Zack down to her level to kiss him quickly. "I think I see Modoeheim from here. Zack, lemme get on your shoulders for a better view."

Zack crouched down and she hopped onto his shoulders. He grabbed her shins so she wouldn't fall off. Kitty held her hands around her eyes like binoculars and she nodded. "Yup. Modeoheim is up there. Why exactly are we going to Modeoheim again?"

Angel looked saddened for a moment before steeling herself. "Angeal and Hollander have been spotted."

Kitty frowned and distracted herself with Zack's hair. "Zack has really soft and good smelling hair. I like my Puppy's hair very much."

Zack grinned and reached up to pet Kitty's head. "How about I grow it out for ya? That way you can have more to play with."

Kitty nodded excitedly. "If it won't bother you too much."

"It's not a problem. But, you have to get yours cut short."

Kitty held her two pigtails close to her. Her hair had been long since she could remember and in two pigtails. "I guess I can. How short do you want it?"

His hand traced her jaw. "Starting here and getting shorter in the back. It wouldn't be in your way anymore. I know it gets in your way sometimes when you fight."

Kitty shrugged. "It does once in a while."

"Alright then. Hopefully, it shouldn't take too long to reach Modeoheim."

Angel rolled her eyes. "You can get down now."

"Nu-uh. I'm gonna keep both eyes open for fiends and Zack is training by carrying me."

Angel shook her head at Kitty. "Your logic always confuses me."

"Logic is logic."

"That doesn't mean it always works out."

"It is logic, though. My logic. You don't have to listen to it."

"No, but you could use better logic."

"Could doesn't mean I should."

"Stop arguing with me."

"No."

"You know you'll lose."

"I know."

Angel sighed. "Then why do you argue so much?"

Kitty shrugged and attempted to flatten Zack's spikes. "I like arguing. It's fun. Whether I win or lose is unimportant."

~Yet another time skip~

They wandered into the large and warm building, welcomig the warmth. Especially poor Tseng. The only reason Kitty stayed warm was because she stayed attached to Zack's hip. Angel was naturally hot-blooded and Niah and Cloud cuddle-walked.

Tseng decided to split up. So, Cloud and the other infantryman stayed with Tseng and the SOLDIERs wandered around. They saw an elevator and stepped inside, riding it upwards.

Hollander backed away from Genesis, saying, "What's the meaning of this? You need me, Genesis, remember that. If you get rid of me, who's going to stop the degradation?"

They saw Genesis with gray starting from his hair and slowly working its' way down. Streaks of the once fire-red hair were now white. They waited impatiently for the cage-lke door to open.

Genesis pointed his sword at Hollander. "The Jenova cells."

Zack ran as the door opened and hit Genesis' sword with his own, giving Hollander the chance to escape. "Stop!" Cloud came up out of nowhere and grabbed Hollander.

Hollander struggled and elbowed Cloud in the head. Cloud let go and fell to the ground. Niah ran over to him and glared at Hollander, tempted to throw something. LIke, say, a chakram or two.

Zack guarded Hollander from Genesis. Hollander spouted out, "Nobody knows where the Jenova cells are being kept! Not even Hojo knows. You'll never find it!"

Genesis simply said, "Then I shall willingly accept my fate. But, I'll take the world with me!"

Genesis charged at Zack, but his attacks were deflected. Hollander ran off as Zack was busy with Genesis. Cloud stood and Zack turned to say, "Go after Hollander!"

Cloud nodded and Kitty and Niah followed after him. Angel grabbed her swords and said to Zack, "I got him. You go, too.'

Zack nodded and Angel quickly began fighting him. He fell eventually and began walking backwards. He flew up and fell down the seemingly bottomless pit. Angel watched as the darkness swallowed him.

Angel left the building and saw everybody missing. Angel spotted a head of spikey black hair and yelled out, "Porcupine!"

Zack turned around and waved at her. Angel jogged over to him and said, "Did Kitty blow this hole open?"

Zack shook his head and began walking through the dark tunnel. "I think this is an old train rail. The ice was just blocking it, so I think she cleared it."

Angel nodded and they came out the other end to what looked like a small town. They wandered inside the buildings and fought an Angeal copy. They entered what looked like an old bathhouse and went up some stairs to see a knocked out Cloud. They woke him up and Cloud groaned, unable to stand on his own.

"We're fine. Kitty and Niah went ahead."

Angel nodded and spotted Tseng sitting on some steps, leaning against a doorway.

Zack ran over to him and asked what was going on. Tseng pointed through the doorway. "You have to catch Hollander. Angeal is waiting."

Zack nodded and him and Angel went through the doorway, looking around for their group or Hollander or Angeal. They finally fouind Angeal on the second floor. Sadly, no Kitty or Niah.

Angeal glanced at them. "It should have been me... I should have dealt with Genesis."

Angel nodded. "then why'd you send us?"

Angeal turned and pointed his Buster Sword at them. "To prepare you... for your next fight."

Zack stared incerdulously at him. "What? Have you gone mad?"

Angel stepped away as Angeal started swinging at Zack. "Angeal, please don't do this."

The two clashed swords and Hollander showed his scraggly face. "Very good, Angeal! It is time to exact vengeance for our family's suffering!"

Angel and Zack both looked at Angeal. "Family?"

Angeal glared at Hollander. "No! My father is dead!"

Angeal shoved Zack away and Hollander said, "Fine, then do it for your mother."

"My mother's shame made her take her own life."

"Shame? How terribly misguided! She should have been proud... Proud that she was the namesake of our experiment. 'Project G,' or should I say, 'Project Gillian.'"

Angeal grabbed Hollander's shirt collar. "Don't say her name!"

Hollander slowly removed Angeal's hand. "Gillian, the woman implanted with Jenova cells. Genesis, who had her genes mapped onto him during the fetal stage. Yes, Genesis was a failure, I'll admit it. But you, Angeal... You were actually bred inside Gillian's body. You, you are perfection."

Angeal shoved Hollander to the ground and turned away from them. "Zack, I am perfect. A perfect... monster. My cells can absorb traits, and pass them along to others."

Hollander stood and said, "I two-way conduit... Jenova's power has passed on to you completely."

Angeal glared before looking down. "Zack, do you remember what I said? About our enemy being those that create suffering?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah, but you're not one of them."

"But I created my own suffering. Zack, let me show you."

Hollander yelled as Zack turned to face Angeal, "Stop it! You don't know what you're doing!"

Angeal raised his hand and fiends gathered around them. Angel glared as one wolf neared her, but didn't attack.

Hollander cursed and ran over to Angeal. "Damn! At least one sample!" He reached up, trying to get some of his hair.

Suddenly, a blur attacked him, hissing. Kitty glared at Hollander as she sat on his torso. "Touch a hair and I rip your hand off."

Niah entered the room, panting. "Damn, you run fast. How did we get lost?"

Kitty shrugged and kept her glare trained on Hollander. The fiends rushed twoards Angeal and Zack watched as they fused together into one giant creature.

It pointed the trident at Zack, before thrusting it forward. It sliced Zack's cheek and was sure to leave a scar. Hollander shoved Kitty off him and ran away. The girls brandished their weapons, facing the monster that was once Angeal.

Angel in particular gave everything she had in fighting. Kitty and Zack were both aprehensive at first, but a glare from Angel encouraged them to fight. Angeal roared and electrocuted Kitty, sending her flying back into Zack. Zack caught her and saw her form go limp. He set her down against a wall and returned to fighting.

Angeal Penance was - to be blunt - an ass to fight. Niah and Zack were both starting to slow down and the main reason Angel was still fighting was anger. Angeal roared loudly, preparing for the finishing blow.

Angel roared back and her swords began glowing a bright red. She ran at Angeal and swung her swords. There was a shockwave blast as the two clashed. Angeal reverted back to his usual self and flew back. Angel flew back and landed beside Kitty.

Niah sighed in relief. "Thank goodness it's over."

~SKip~

Kitty and Zack clung to each other on their bed, crying softly. Angeal and Angel were in the infirmary, both in comas. They were happy the older couple were alive, but sad they had to fo through all that.

Zack held the back of Kitty's shirt, his face buried in her warm chest. He suspected Kitty had fallen asleep.


	18. Chapter 18

"Project G was Angeal's mother's experiment. We apprehended Hollander in Modeo and turned him over to the company. After that, the company put us on standby. That was a while ago... ShinRa is apparently in disarray right now. The turks are hanging around every day. They say our vacations 'overlapped' coincidentally. Yeah, right... But none of them ever mention Genesis. Almost as if they never existed. Is that how little SOLDIER is worth these days? What do I have left to fight for? What is SOLDIER honor...?"

Zack sighed, looking at the ocean water. They were all on a vacation in Junon. Of course, the vacation was exactly willing. By that, Kitty refused to be moved away from Angel or Angeal. She stayed by their sides, talking to them. She had to be knocked out to be removed from the room.

The young couple kept their promises about growing out/cutting their hair. Kitty had her hair cut short and with the way it curled, it almost looked like it spiked in some parts. Zack's hair grew out and was kept between his shoulder blades except for two strands that refused to be tamed.

Niah and Cloud were also at Junon with Kitty and Zack. Of course, they had no choice in the matter. They weren't complaining, but still would have enjoyed a different vacation other than the beach. Like, for example, an amusement park.

Kitty and Niah were sitting under an umbrella, staying out of the sun's harsh rays. Zack and Cloud were in the sun, doing squats. Well, Zack was trying to teach Cloud how to do a perfect squat.

Cissnei walked over to them, wearing a modest and cute bakini. "Suntan lotion?"

Cloud panted, reaching out for the bottle. Unlike Zack, he had been raised in colder temperatures, and he had been sweating the moment Zack mentioned squats.

Cissnei giggled and handed it to Cloud. Zack sighed, standing. "I'll pass. But, what is this? Are they putting me out to pasture?"

Cissnei shrugged. "You could use some R&R."

"I'm bored! that's it, I'm calling them."

"Director Lazard's not in. He's been missing for a while now. It was Lazard who was funding Hollander's research. Using the company's money."

Zack blinked in surprise. "Are you serious?" They'd been away for quite a while now.

"We're interrogating Hollander, so we should learn more soon."

"What's wrong with them?"

"Hm?"

"People. What are they all thinking?"

"The truth lies within each person. But even truth seems suspect once it leaves their mouths..."

Tseng ran over to them, pointing out at the water. "Look out! Genesis copies!"

Zack grabbed a nearby folded umbrella and started fighting with it. Kitty grinned nad leaned back in her chair, watching the view. Niah eyed Kitty and sighed, shaking her head. Cloud sat on Niah's chair near her feet, his muscles relaxing sowly.

Zack fought off the copies and talked with Tseng. "You will be coming us to Junon. More Genesis copies are attacking."

Zack nodded. "Got it. Just give us a few minutes."

Tseng nodded stiffly. "You've got five."

Kitty overheard and repeated the message to Niah. Niah grinned and whooped. "Finally! Some action! I've been on my ass way too long."

~Skip~

People ran by them, screaming in fear as Genesis copies chased them. Cloud raised his gun and shot the copies with near-perfect aim. Tseng turned to them and said, "You find Hollander and make sure he's kept safe. We will evacuate the citizens."

Zack crossed his arms. "You're making volatile female SOLDIERs babysit Hollander? I'm not fond of him myself. Don't you think we'd be put to better use on the batlefield?"

"Hollander has access to top-secret information. The president insists that his safety be priority one. After Director Lazard's sudden disappearance, SOLDIER's chain of command has been shaky at best. This attack is an attampt to exploit that weakness. You must protect Hollander."

Cissnei added in, "Hollander is currently being held in a detention center on the 5th level of Upper Junon. You can use emergency elevator to go up. It's at the end of this path. We're counting on you."

Tseng said, "Hollander is still being interrogated. He can't fall into enemy hands now."

Zack nodded. "Got it. Let's go, guys."

The three nodded and Niah grabbed Cloud's shoulders, looking him dead in the eye. "Spikey, I don't want you to get hurt. You're not SOLDIER yet and if you got hurt, I'd kill someone. And then I'd kill you for getting hurt. Stay here and help with the kids. I know how good you are with them and you should help them."

Cloud nodded sadly. He wanted to help fight, but understood Niah's concern. He leaned down and briefly kissed her, pulling away to stand beside Tseng and Cissnei. The three SOLDIERs left the Turks and Cloud to run to the elevator.

Of course, there were some copies, but nothing they couldn't handle. THe rode the elevator up and stepped out onto the street. They ran down and saw Hollander run out an alley.

Niah cursed and said, "He must've escaped during the attack with the security stretched so thin."

Zack groaned and yelled, "Hollander! Stop right there! You're not getting away!"

A Genesis copy with a gunblade came between them, slowing their pursuit. Kitty ran over ot the nearest building and climbed up the side. "I'll go after Hollander from here! You handle the copies."

Zack nodded and fought the copies with Niah. Kitty ran along the rooftops, shooting down the few copies that flew somewhat close to her. Zack and Niah ran through the streets. "That way is the airspace! Is he planning a getaway by air?"

Hollander turned to them and laughed. "Is it really me you should be worried about?"

They heard a high-pitched squeal before Kitty plowed into Zack. She gasped as two mechs flew to them. Usually, they wouldn't have been a problem, but her spells were next to useless against them.

Zack set her down behind him and she used her staff for support. "They got me good, Puppy. I'm hurting bad."

Niah tossed Kitty a Potion before making sure her daggers were on tight. "You hang back for a moment, we've got these guys. You keep an eye on Hollander."

Kitty nodded and slowly made her way to Hollander. Hollander was pushing buttons, trying to get the large door to open. Niah and Zack noticed more mechs trying to get to the civilians and quickly eliminated them. Niah was especially fighting hard; she had a sinking feeling Cloud wasn't doing too hot and was vulnerable at the moment.

They got to the airspace and took the elevator up. They saw Hollander running away from Kitty, who was stalking him like a cat. Zack patted Kitty's hand thankfully. "That's far enough!"

Hollander noticed he was at the edge of the runway and smirked at Zack. "Really? You sure?" He fell back and two winged Genesis copies grabbed Hollander, flying away with him.

Niah cursed before noticing the pretty sunset. She sat at the edge, not having a fear of falling. Zack stood, facing the sunset. Kitty walked over to him and he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close.

They heard a voice say, "Mission failed. This goes on your permanent record."

Kitty turned and smiled at Sephiroth. He gave her a faint smile back and her smile turned into a grin. "Shiny! I missed you!"

"Let the Turks take care of the rest. I was on my way to Modeoheim, but I heard you were in the area."

Niah scoffed. "Lucky us."

Sephiroth nodded a little. "The situation has not resolved. Genesis copies have been sighted around the world."

Zack's brow furrowed. "That can't be. We wuped out those Genesis copies."

"DId Genesis really die?"

"Uh.." Angel had been there to watch Genesis fall. Surely, he was dead.

"They've been sighted in Midgar as well."

"I see..."

"The slums, too..."

Zack opened his mouth to say something, but didn't want Kitty to spazz at him. Sephiroth understood the silent question and nodded. "Permission to return... granted."

"Thanks. What's going on in Modeoheim?"

"The device Hollander was using has been stolen."

"Genesis?"

"Probably. We'll meet again soon."

Zack pointed at him, walking away. "We will hold you to that."

Niah followed the two, a certain Chocobo in mind. Sephiroth smiled to himself as they walked away. Maybe he should get out more...


	19. Chapter 19

One quiet night, Kitty found herself unable to sleep. It wasn't uncommon lately, but her insomnia had gotten better since Angel and Angeal returned. Despite them both being in a coma, she felt as though everything was slowly getting better. Of course, Genesis was still out and about somewhere. Plus, Lazard was missing.

She rode the elevator to the roof and saw the helicopters all in place and hunkered down. She stepped out and wrapped her arms around herself. She only wore a pair of shorts and a thin tank and didn't think about even sliding on a pair of shoes.

Kitty walked over about ten feet away from the edge and sat on the cool cement. She looked up, admiring the stars as they shined down on her. It was hard to see the stars in the city, but on the roof they were crystal clear.

She lost track of time and heard a faint flap from a wing. Before she could turn around and look, a hand covered her mouth and another wrapped around her arms, pinning them to her sides.

Kitty's eyes widened and she thrashed, kicking at the person holding her. She heard a grunt and the person say, "If you want your precious family to live, you better not scream."

She stopped fighting and glared at Genesis, but nodded. He released her and she turned around. "What the hell are you doing here? If I were armed, I would kill you myself."

Genesis chuckled and held out his arms. "You would harm an old friend? A part of your family?"

Kitty glared. "Angel put Angeal in a coma. Don't think I won't hurt you as well."

Genesis scoffed. "I've seen you fight. You never fight alone. Your dearest Angel or Zack are always with you. The short time they aren't, you either summon Titan or are with Angeal or Niah. You are alone up here with me."

Kitty's glare wavered. He got her on that part; she never fought alone unless it was a dire emergency. The last time she fought alone she ended up sleeping for an entire week straight.

Her fists clenched tightly at her sides. "What is it you want?"

Genesis's smirk sent a chill down her spine. "Simple. I want to break you."

Before she could blink, he had her pinned down and was ripping her top in half. She realized how exactly he was going to break her and began screaming loudly, punching and clawing him. Genesis caught her hands and tied them with a piece of her shirt.

He straddled her waist and ripped her shorts off. Kitty closed her eyes and turned her head to the side, not wanting to let him see her cry. Genesis grabbed her chin and forced her head to look at him. He leaned down, one hand playing with her, and roughly placed his lips over hers.

Kitty's eyes snapped open and met his own. Tears filled her eyes as Genesis unzipped his pants and swiftly entered her. She tore away from him and screamed, tears gushing out her eyes. Genesis smirked victoriously and laughed.

Kitty closed her eyes, not wanting to look at him anymore. She would've covered her ears, but Genesis had her hands tied above her head. The cold cement on her cool skin, making her arch up into him unwillingly.

Genesis decided to show a little sliver of kindness and came across her stomach instead of inside of her. He zipped himself back up and stood, eyeing the broken girl. Blood came out of her and he watched with sick glee as she curled into herself, whimpering in pain.

He untied her hands and turned to leave. He stopped, hearing a faint "Why?"

Genesis turned and crouched near her head, petting her hair. Her ears were laid back, but shook like the rest of her body. "I thought of a way to hurt everyone at once. Physical injuries heal eventually over time. So, I thought and thought until you crossed my mind. I concluded that if I were to hurt you in a way that you could never fully heal from. All I had to was wait for you to be alone, so I waited in patience. Until tonight, when you were finally alone and defenseless. Sweet, sweet, Kitty. You may think you are innocent and pure, but you have killed and lost your innocence. You are not pure; you are tainted. Hurting you in this way hurt you physically and mentally. Once the rest find you, they will see how broken you are but will be unable to help you. You will flinch at their touches and hide even from your dearest puppy."

Kitty shakily shook her head. "Why did you become evil?" She was speeking surprisingly clearly for a person who just got raped.

Genesis rose an eyebrow at her. This was a question he had not been expecting. "I do not have an answer." He spoke honestly to her. "It has been pleasant seeing you again. I hope to see you again so we can play some more."

He kissed her cheek and stood, his wing appearing and he flew off into the night sky. Kitty lay curled on the cold roof, shaking and completely bare. The cold seeped into her bones and she eventually passed out.

Reno stretched, talking to Rude. "I wonder how my girl was last night." Of course, he was talking about his helicopter.

Rude rolled his eyes behind his glasses. "I'm sure she's fine."

Reno walked out the elevator, walking towards his helicopter. It was the one closest to the edge, but also most taken care of. He saw a small form and stopped, staring at it with confusion. Rude walked past him and eyed the form.

The taller male said nothing as he quickly took off his coat and wrapped it around the small form. He stood and walked past Reno, taking long strides. Reno saw Kitty's face and spotted the torn clothes and blood on the cement roof.

He stared in shock at Kitty and followed Rude. Kitty looked troubled, even as she was unconscious. He hoped that his thoughts were wrong, but he spotted the dried blood on her inner thighs and began to shake with anger.

Rude walked straight to the infirmary and placed her on a clean bed. He grabbed a nurse and said, "She's been raped."

The nurse's eyes widened and she ushered him and Reno out the room. Reno angrily kicked the wall. "Who the hell would do that to her? Of all people, why her? She's the happiest, kindest, and most innocent SOLDIER I have ever met. Why would somebody want to break her like that?"

Rude thought for a moment. "They wanted to harm the entire group without doing major physical damage."

Reno glared at the wall. "What they did to her was physical, mental, and emotional damage. She'll be scarred forever. Do you want be the bearer of bad news or me?"

Rude placed a calm hand on Reno's shoulder. "Let's both go."

Zack stared in shock at Reno and Rude. Sephiroth was beside him, showing no anger other than his clenched fists. Niah was shaking in anger and Cloud was standing beside her, holding her in a tight hug. Cloud was shaking himself, but he was glaring at the floor.

Zack felt shock run through him before pure anger showed its face. He grabbed Reno's shoulders and said, "Are you sure that she was raped? Our Kitty? My Kitten?"

Reno held his hands up in defense. "I saw the blood and torn clothes. The blood was on her inner thighs. It's only a logical conclusion."

Zack growled lowly. "Where is she? Tell me!"

Rude grabbed Zack's hands and pried him off Reno. "She's in the infirmary being taken care of. If you want to see her, that's where she is."

Sephiroth was gone in the blink of an eye. Zack was right behind him with Niah and Cloud following. It was bad enough that Angel and Angeal were both in comas, but with Kitty being raped and now in the infirmary as well, Zack didn't know what to do.

Sephiroth was sitting on the bed, holding Kitty's hand in a tight grip. She had an IV attached to her arm along with a heart monitor and other machines. She wore a pale hospital gown and the sheets made her look even more pale. Her face was twisted and she whimpered as if she were in pain.

Zack sat down on her opposite side and grabbed her other hand, stroking it gently. He reached up with his other hand and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. She flinched away from him, making him frown.

"I can't believe that someone would do this to her."

Sephiroth shook his head. "I can't either. I do have an idea on who would, though."

Zack was silent for a moment. "Genesis?"

Sephiroth nodded as Kitty stirred slightly. He watched as her eyes slowly opened. She didn't seem to realize who she was with or where she was by how she reacted; she pulled her hands away and shook as she backed up against the wall away from them.

Niah and Cloud entered the room, seeing Kitty pressed against the wall and away from Zack and Sephiroth for once. Kitty was panting and her eyes darted between Zack and Sephiroth quickly. She didn't seem to realize she was in no danger at the way she was pressed up against the wall.

Sephiroth told Zack to back away and Zack slowly followed his orders to stand beside Niah and Cloud. Sephiroth gently moved his hands to lightly grip Kitty's shoulders. She trembled violently and turned her head to her side, closing her eyes tightly. The heart monitor began to speed up and a nurse walked by to poke her head in. Once she saw Sephiroth was there, she simply unplugged the machine and left.

Sephiroth spoke gently and calmly, "You are safe. The danger is gone. You are inside the Shin-Ra Building in the infirmary. Your friends are with you. You are with your family. I am your big brother Shiny and you are my little sister Kitty. This is Zack and he is your puppy. Niah is your sister Ni-Ni and her boyfriend Cloud is your brother Choco. Your sister Angel and your papa Angeal are both in comas and in the infirmary. They knocked each other out fighting a while back."

Kitty's breathing slowed and she slowly turned to look at Sephiroth. She looked around and began to take in her surroundings. Her pupils began to return to their normal size and tears poured out of them. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Sephiroth. She buried her face into his chest and cried.

Sephiroth petted her head, softly whispering to her. Zack walked over slowly and sat down on the bed. He heard Sephiroth repeating "You are safe," over and over like a mantra. Zack looked sadly at Kitty. He had never seen her look so... broken before.

Zack had seen her sad and mad and happy. He mostly saw her happy. The main time he saw her sad was when Angeal had first thrown her and given her a concussion. She was mad when she learned Genesis had ruined her family by tainting Angeal's mind. She was a naturally happy person. To see her broken was heartbreaking to him.

Kitty cried. She cried so hard it made the day she cried to Angel after Angeal hit her seem like it was nothing. She held onto Sephiroth like a life line.

Niah and Cloud came over, crowding on the bed. They heard some groaning and heavy footsteps. Sephiroth looks over and sees Angel and Angeal breathing heavily. They were using each other as support, but at least they were awake and standing.

Angel took one glance at Kitty and walked over, nearly collapsing on the bed as she shoved Sephiroth out the way and hugged Kitty tightly. Angeal sat in the chair and grabbed the bottle of water to drink from it.

Sephiroth glanced at Angeal and leaned against the wall beside the chair. "I assume you are feeling better."

Angeal nodded. "I am. Still tired, though."

Sephiroth nodded in understanding. "You've been in a coma for nearly two years. Things have changed a lot. Especially Kitty recently."

Angeal glanced up at Sephiroth worriedly. "What happened?"

Sephiroth's stare turned cold. "We suspect Genesis raped her."

Angeal looked up at Sephiroth, shock plain on his face. "Are you sure?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Reno and Rude found her curled up on the roof with dried blood on her inner thighs and semen was on her stomach. Her clothes were torn off her and her wrists had faint marks on them from being tied. The semen was tested and it was Genesis'. He broke her in the cruelsest way he knew how. He took away her innocence without a second thought."

Angeal gripped the arms of the chair tightly. "I will kill him myself. That was the last straw. She did not deserve to be raped. Nobody deserves that."

Sephiroth placed a hand on Angeal's shoulder. "Calm down. Anger will get you nowhere. Especially in your state. You need to heal."

Angeal nodded. "I know I need to heal first. We all need some healing. The next time I see Genesis, I am going to wrap my hands around his throat and squeeze the life out of him."

Sephiroth nodded. "Be sure to save some for me. She is my little sister. I will admit that fact to anyone who questions it or threatens her. I saved her from a similar incident a while back. I told her to stay inside at night and when she goes out to make sure she brought someone with her. Even if it was just Cloud."

Angeal shook his head sadly and rested his head in his hands, his elbows on his legs. "She's so vulnerable on her own and doesn't realize it."

"I offered to train her in hand to hand combat, but she refused. She has her two daggers, but doesn't know how to fight in close ranged combat."

Angeal shook his head and saw Kitty snuggling into Angel's lap. "Kitty." Kitty looked up at him. Her eyes were red and puffy, but she had stopped crying. "I am going to teach you in close combat. You need to learn to defend yourself in tight quaters."

Kitty nodded slightly. Angeal had simply used a tone that she couldn't argue with. Sephiroth made it clear she needed to train, but never made it sound so... dominant.

Kitty opened her mouth, trying to form words. At first, she couldn't make a noise. Zack patted her back and Angel gently tightened her grip on Kitty's hand. Sephiroth said, "This happened after the first incident. She couldn't speak until the next morning."

Kitty tried to glare at her lips. Cloud said, "I can go get you something warm to drink. It helped me when I lost my voice during the winter."

Kitty nodded and Cloud stood, leaving them. Niah looked at Kitty and wrapped her arms around Kitty's waist, resting her chin on Kitty's shoulder. "If I say everything's fine, would I be lying to you?"

Kitty nodded and reached around to grab Niah's tail. Niah moved her tail to let Kitty play with it a little. Kitty smiled a little, but her smile seemed off.

Niah sighed. "Let's just hope everything gets better a little bit. Even a little bit will be a great help. Unfortunately, I have this inkling that things are going to get worse."

Angel patted Niah's head. "It doesn't matter if things get worse. We're together again. That's what matters at the moment."

Kitty suddenly pointed at Angeal, making noises at him. Angel hands Kitty a pen and pad of sticky notes. Kitty begins writing and hands the note to Zack, who reads it aloud, "'Papa has angel wings.'"

Angeal sighs sadly. "Yes, I have angel wings. I am no monster, Kitty. You and Angel changed my mind quickly."

Kitty gave him a shaky grin. She nodded and wrote another note, handing it to Angel. Angel smiled as she read it, "'We are a twisted, slightly disformed family. But, we are still family and family look after each other. None of us are monsters.' Well, she speaks the truth."

Cloud entered, holding a steaming mug of hot chocolate. He handed it to Kitty. She smiled at the warmth and held the warm mug to her throat. She held it until it stopped steaming and cooled off. She then started drinking the lukewarm drink, smiling as it warmed her insides.

Cloud cocked his head to the side. "Why don't you drink it while it's still hot?"

Kitty moved her lips, but no words were coming out. Angel explained for her, "Kitty always drinks her hot chocolate when it's lukewarm. She claims it's too hot otherwise."

Cloud sighs and sits in the empty chair. He shakes his head at Kitty. "You are something else, you know that?"

Kitty grins and lets out a raspy "Yes."

Sephiroth blinks at her. "It took you an entire night to talk after I saved you, but it only takes you a little lukewarm hot chocolate after actually getting raped. There is something seriously wrong with you."

Kitty shrugged before yawning. She grabbed the bad and wrote. Angel read over it and nodded. "Niah, can you ask the nurse if Kitty can leave? Along with me and Angeal since we're moving around on our own now."

Niah nodded and ran out the door. She returned a moment later, grinning from ear to ear. "Let's go home. We can all stay in Sephiroth's apartment since he has the largest. It's about time we get together again."

Kitty unhooked everything from her and even pulled the needle out her arm. She stood on shaking legs, wincing slightly. Zack stood and moved to lift her up. Kitty shook her head and said, "No help."

She grabbed Zack's hand and gripped it tightly. Angel stood and grabbed her other. Kitty nodded.

They all stood and followed Kitty out. She walked with slow, shaking steps like a little kid. Sephiroth concluded that she would recover and be back to her normal self in a short amount of time. Possibly within a month or two at the most. She would be laughing and skipping around in no time.

~Two months later~

Kitty gripped the bar, spinning around it repeatedly like a gymnast. She let go, flipping through the air and landing on the mat placed there. She landed perfectly with her back straight and her arms stretched out beside her.

She heard clapping and turned her head to see Kunsel standing by the door. She blushed and panted slightly. Since what happened two moths prior, she had begun training with Angeal and kept her regular training regime that Genesis had been working on her with.

Kunsel walked over to her, but kept his distance. He was so used to her hugging him, that seeing her shy away from him was a little heartbreaking.

"You looked wonderful."

Kitty blushed and looked at her feet. "Thanks."

Kunsel nodded and said, "Maybe someday you can teach me how to do that."

Kitty giggle. "Maybe some other day I will. Hey, Papa Angeal!"

Kunsel turned and saw Angeal walking towards them. Angeal and Angel have both been getting better, but weren't quite at the level they used to be at. Angeal stood beside Kunsel, glancing at Kitty.

"Get your daggers and we'll begin once you get some water."

Kitty nodded and ran over to her bag. Kunsel looked up at Angeal. It wasn't a lie saying that Angeal had become over protective of Kitty and made it obvious that he didn't like her being alone with any male outside their group. That included Kunsel.

Kunsek turned to leave and patted Angeal's arm. "Good luck, Kitty."

Kitty gave him a thumbs and stood in front of Angeal, her daggers in hand. "Alright, Papa. I'm ready."

Angeal nodded and grabbed a standard sword. "Good. I decided that since you've been doing so good, you will go against me."

Kitty blinked and shifted nervously. "Are you sure? I'm not that good."

Angeal shook his head, smiling a little. "You've been excelling. Don't worry, I'll go easy on you."

Kitty bit her lip, but nodded. "If you say so."

Angeal shifted into his battle stance. "Begin."

Kitty took a breath and ran at him, daggers held up. She charged at Angeal, who easily blocked. He swung at her and she jumped away, easily dodging. She darted behind him and jumped up to grab his shoulders and do a handstand on him.

"Do I win?"

Angeal raised an eyebrow. "You don't seem to understand the meaning of training, do you?"

Kitty grinned and moved one hand to lightly press the dagger against his neck. "I won."

They heard a phone go off and Kitty hopped down so Angeal could answer his. "Hewley speaking... yes... on our way." He pocketed his phone and told Kitty, "We have a mission."

Kitty nodded and walked over to grab her bag. She felt something poke her back and jumped away to see Angeal holding the training sword out, smirking. She pouted and grumbled, you won."

He nodded and they walked to the Briefing Room. They saw the screen lit up with a world map and several flashing dots on it.

Sephiroth nodded as they sat down and began, "Legions of monsters have spawned near a regional mako reactor. The workers have all gone missing. Local SOLDIER operatives have also vanished. The company is dispatching additional operatives to investigate the matter. That'll be us."

Zack nodded and gently placed an arm over Kitty's shoulders. "Roger that."

Kitty looked up at Zack worriedly. Sephiroth, however, continued, "The missing operatives were the ones tracking Lazard. ALso, they had reported a strange podlike device in the area."

Niah boredly raised her hand and asked, "Is that one of Hollander's thingies?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Probably the same device that was stolen in Modeoheim."

"Meaning what?"

"Lazard, Hollander..." The third name is unspoken, but known. "We'll have to go see them."

Kitty's breath caught in her throat and she trembled slightly, causing Zack to gently pull her closer to him. Zack nodded and said, "Let's go and get this over with."

Sephiroth shook his head. "First, go to the SOLDIER floor. We'll depart as soon as the rest of the men are ready to go."

Angel piped in and asked, "How many of us are going?"

Sephiroth didn't blink. "Us in this room along with two infantryman. One is Cloud. Our mission is to investigate the reactor. Depending on what happens, I may abandon ShinRa. Until then, I'll remain loyal to SOLDIER."

Kitty grinned and said, "If you leave, can we come with you? I'm getting tired of all the stares I've been getting. Plus, I overheard some higher-ups saying that me, Angeal, and Angel are starting to become burdens to the company. They also claim since the incident, I won't be able to fight properly again."

Angel rolled her eyes at Kitty. "Yeah, if we go missing on this mission, it's on purpose. I'm getting sick of this place really quick."

Niah nodded and leaned back in her chair. "I thought SOLDIER would be more of a challenge and less boring. I'm with you ladies."

Sephiroth sighed and rubbed his temple. "I swear, SOLDIER is going down in flames very soon."

Angeal nodded and said, "It will. I'm surprised our resident pyros haven't burned it down yet."

Cue evil grins.


	20. Chapter 20

They walked into Nibelheim and looked around at the small town. Zack shivered slightly and pulled Kitty closer to him. He still didn't like the cold very much.

Sephiroth stopped and looked around. "So, how does it feel? To be home after all this time? I have no hometown. I wouldn't know."

Cloud shrugged, keeping his helmet on. Niah noticed his silence and asked, "What's wrong?"

Cloud looked down and said, "I promised I wouldn't come back until I joined SOLDIER."

Zack nodded and looked at Sephiroth. "What about family?"

Sephiroth turned around and said, "My mother's name is Jenova. She died shortly after I was born. My father..." Sephiroth started laughing and everybody looked at him worriedly. "Why am I talking about this? Come on, let's go."

He turned around and started walking, the group following behind him. Zack lingered behind with Kitty. Kitty looked up at him curiously and Zack said, "Sephiroth's mother's name is Jenova? Huh..."

Kitty shrugged and said, "It must be a coincidence."

Zack nodded and walked along with her under his arm. Cloud and the other infantrymen stayed by the entrance to the town. Niah stood beside Cloud and said she'll make sure they stay out of trouble.

Angeal and Angel wandered around, making sure no fiends were in the small town. Kitty stayed close to Zack, who followed after Sephiroth. They walked towards looked liked an Inn and a voice stopped them. "Are you one of the SOLDIER people who've come to investigate?'

They turned around and saw a girl with black hair and a cowgirl hat on. Zack nodded and said, "My name's Zack and this is Kitty. We're with SOLDIER. First Class, mind you, First Class!"

Tifa simply said, "Huh."

Zack raised an eyebrow and said, "What do you mean, 'huh'?"

"Are there a lot of SOLDIER First Classes?"

Zack shook his head. "Nope, we're a small, elite group."

"They only sent three?"

"No, there's more around here somewhere."

"Uh-huh." She looked like she had to ask something, but ran off.

Zack crossed his arms and shook his head. "Weird girl."

Kitty nodded and said, "Even weirder than me."

Sephiroth called them over to him. He said, "We depart for the reactor at dawn. Make sure to get plenty of sleep."

Kitty nodded and said, "I'll go find sissy and papa and tell them."

Zack nodded and let her go. She ran off and Sephiroth continued, "Only or two of us need to keep watch. Make sure everyone gets rest."

Cloud walked over to Sephiroth, a question lingering. Sephiroth glanced at Cloud and said, "You may go visit friends and family if you want."

Cloud nodded, even though he doubted he would even take his helmet off due to that promise he had made. As long as he wasn't in SOLDIER, he still wasn't quite ready to be home.

Kitty wandered back over and smiled, hugging Zack from behind. "I told sissy and Angeal. I hope the inn has enough room. We're not a particularly small group."

Zack nodded and said, "I'm sure we can share. As long as someone keeps their voice down at night."

Kitty turned pink and lightly elbowed Zack's side. "You keep quiet. I'm tired, so I'm going to go and head inside and get some sleep."

They nod and follow her inside.

~Next day at the Shinra Manor~

They stood in front of the large gate of the Shinra Manor. Niah and Kitty both said, "Damn."

TIfa nods and says, "Follow me."

Zack raised an eyebrow and asked, "You're our guide?"

"At your service! Nobody is a better guide than me in this town."

Tifa opened the rusty gate and they walked through. She closed it back and they followed her through the terrain. By the time they got close to the reactor, Kitty and Niah were on Cloud and Zack's backs.

Once actually at the reactor, the girls stood and stretched. Sephiroth walked up the steps and heard Tifa say, "I want to go inside and look!"

Zack shook his head and said, "It's too dangerous."

Niah nodded and tossed an arm around Tifa's shoulders. "I'll stay here with you and the infantry. Ya know, keep the outside safe and stop any intruders."

Tifa sighs and nods. "Alright."

Angeal said, "I'll stay here as well. In case any strong fiends come along."

Angel nods and kisses him briefly before heading inside with Kitty and Zack since Sephiroth was already inside. They looked around at the odd shaped pods. Zack and Kitty wandered to the large door with JENOVA written above it.

Zack blinked in surprise and scratched the top of his head. "JENOVA... interesting. The door is sealed, of course."

Kitty nodded and asked, "Jenova? Like, Sephiroth's mom's name?"

Angel wandered around and cautiously peered into one of the pods. She made a face before stepping away. Sephiroth looked at one and said, "This is the cause of the malfunction. This section is broken. Angel, go seal the valve."

Angel nodded and walked over to the valve. She turned it a few times and asked, "Why did it break?"

Zack looked inside a pod and jumped back slightly. "What is it?"

Sephiroth calmly said, "Average SOLDIER members are mako-infused humans. Enhanced, but still human. But then, what are those things? Their mako energy levels are exponentially higher than yours."

Kitty walked over and grabbed Zack's hand. She slowly asked, "Are they... monsters?" Her ears twitched, showing her displeasure.

Sephiroth nodded. "Yes. The Shinra scientist Hojo was the one who created them. Abominations spawned by mako energy... That's what monsters are."

Zack said, "You said 'average' member. What about you?"

Sephiroth suddenly clenched over, holding his head. Kitty was the first by his side, asking if he were alright. Sephiroth shoved her away and Angel caught her. Kitty stared sadly at Sephiroth, her memory of Angeal surfacing.

Sephiroth looked over at a pod and slowly said, "Could it be... that I... was created the same way? Am I the same as these monsters?"

Kitty glared and said, "If you're a monster, than so am I."

Sephiroth shook his head. "No, you're not. I knew, ever since I was a child... I was not like the others. I knew mine was a special existence. But this... This is not what I meant. Am I.. a human being?" He looked at his shaking hands.

They all looked at Sephiroth. They all heard a fifth voice say, "No such luck. You are a monster."

They turned and Kitty let out a grunt as a flaming Zack flew into her. She groaned as her head met the steel steps.

Angel glared at Genesis and grabbed her swords, ready to kill him. "Fuckface. I'm going to fucking slice you into tiny bits for what you did!"

Before she could charge, Sephiroth grabbed her arm. Genesis smirked and said to Sephiroth, "You were the greatest monster created by the Jenova Project."

Zack moved Kitty out the way and stood, glaring at Genesis. "Genesis... So you are alive!"

Angel scoffed. "Not for long if someone lets my arm go."

Genesis said, "I suppose I am, if you can call this living."

Sephiroth asked, "What is the Jenova Project?"

"The Jenova Project... was the term used for all experiments... relating to the use of Jenova's cells."

Sephiroth turned, but kept his death grip on Angel's arm. He wanted answers. "My mother's... cells?"

"Poor little Sephiroth... You've never actually met your mother. You've only been told her name, no?" Genesis sat on the steps, making himself comfortable. "I don't know what images you've conjured up in your head, but..."

Zack clutched his possibly-bruised stomach and said, "Genesis, no!"

"Jenova was excavated from a 2000-year-old rock layer. She's a monster." Sephiroth took a step back, shaking his head. "Sephiroth, I need your help. My body is continuing to degrade. SOLDIER First Class Sephiroth! Jenova Project G gave birth to Angeal... and monsters like myself. Jenova Project S... used the remains of countless failed experiments to create a perfect monster."

Sephiroth shook his head and asked, "What do you want with me?"

"Your traits cannot be copied unto others. Your genes can't be diffused. Therefore, your body cannot degrade. Share your cells with me. 'My friend, your desire is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess."

Genesis stood and held out a Banora apple to Sephiroth. Sephiroth turned to him and said, "Whether your words are lies created to decieve me or the truth, that I have sought all my life, it makes no difference." He swatted the apple out of Genesis' hand and turned to walk out the reactor. "You will rot."

Angel looked up at Sephiroth and asked, "Can I kill him now?"

Sephiroth simply kept his grip on her arm and kept walking. Genesis held his hand and said, "I see.. perfect monster, indeed. 'When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end, the goddess descends from the sky. Wings of light and dark spread afar. She guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting'."

Zack stood, still clutching his waist. "No, stop!" Genesis walked out the reactor and Zack followed after.

He saw Cloud and the other infantryman knocked out cold. Tifa stood behind Angeal, holding her fists up in defense. Niah twirled her chakrams before throwing them at the fiends. Angeal looked at Zack and asked, "Where are the other three?"

Zack drew his sword and said, "They're still in the reactor. Kitty got knocked out and Sephiroth has Angel in a death grip to keep her from attacking Genesis."

Angeal nodded and sliced through the largest enemy with his Buster Sword before setting it on his back. "That was quicker than expected."

Niah nodded and said, "I'm surprised Choco couldn't handle them himself."

Tifa walked over to the fallen Cloud and said, "He protected me while they went on a quick patrol of the area."

Zack nodded and said, "Stay close to us and we'll get you to the town safely."

Tifa nodded and asked, "What about those other three?"

Angeal raised his hand and said, "I'll stay with them. You keep Tifa safe."

He jogged inside and spotted Angel lifting an unconscious Kitty into her arms. "Where did Sephiroth go?"

Angel shrugged and said, "I don't know. He just muttered something about a manor before leaving."

Angeal nodded and placed an arm around her shoulders. "Let's get going." Angel smiled and said, "Sure, let's go."

~At the Inn~

Cloud lay on a bed, his helmet off. Zack was on the bed beside him with Kitty wrapped partially around his waist. Angel and Angeal were laying on the third bed in the large room, but was awake and quietly talking to themselves. Niah was sitting at the foot of Cloud's bed, boredly hanging upside down.

Cloud started shifting and Zack sat up, slightly disturbing Kitty. Cloud sat up slowly and Niah sat up, showing her red face. Cloud looked down and said, "If only I were SOLDIER, I could've helped." Zack grumbled quietly and Cloud asked, "Zack?"

Zack looked down and quietly said, "SOLDIER is like a den of monsters. Don't go inside."

Cloud curiously leaned forward. "What happened?"

Zack slowly said, "I don't know, man..." before standing. Kitty grumbled and reached for the pillow to snuggle it. "I thought I knew, but... By the way, do you know TIfa?"

Cloud quickly shifted and looked away from Zack. Niah crawled up to him and laid her head in his lap, looking up at him. "Sort of," the 'chocobo' said,"

Zack questioned, "Talked to her?"

"No..."

Zack looked at Cloud and seriously said, "I'm sensing some issues here... shouldn't you do something? I'm one to talk. I'm with SOLDIER, so fighting's all I do. Sorting things out is someone else's job."

Niah looked up at him and said, "We do more than fight."

Zack gave her an expressionless look. "Like what?"

"We protect those who can't protect themselves. We protected Tifa and each other."

Zack sighed and continued his rant, "What's going on? Who's the enemy? It makes no difference to me!"

Zack grabbed the Buster Sword leaning against the wall and lifted it, holding it behind his back for a moment before pointing it at nothing in particular. Angeal and Angel watched and their talking quieted even more.

Zack did a few squats before laying behind Kitty. "I'm gonna crash. Night!"

Niah rolled her eyes and laid down, pulling Cloud down with her. She rested her head on his chest and quietly said to him, "Why do you want to join SOLDIER so badly?"

Cloud wrapped his arms around Niah and easily said, "I want to be able to protect the ones I love. I don't want you to fight for me anymore. i want to protect you instead of the other way around."

Niah smiled and leaned up to kiss him. He kissed back and ran his fingers through her hair before pulling away and saying, "We should get some sleep. It's getting late."

Niah pecked his lips once more and laid down. "Agreed."

Angeal and Angel looked at each other and she quietly said, "I'll give him one of mine. That way you don't have to get rid of yours."

Angeal quietly asked, "You won't mind giving up one?"

She shook her head. "I don't mind it. Now, let's sleep. I missed having you next to me at night."

Angel turned pink and Angeal chuckled, gently kissing her before saying, "I missed you, too."

~Next day~

They wandered to the Shinra Manor, Cloud leading the way. "It's right up these steps and to the left. It's sort of hard to miss."

Niah asked, "What was that other building, then?"

Coud shrugged. "I think it was just a mansion. Not the Shinra Manor."

Niah nodded and they walked to the boarded up double doors. Cloud tried the door, but it was locked. Angeal walked to it and tried using brute force. The doors slightly shuddered, but didn't budge further than that.

Angel looked at Kitty and said, "How would you feel about turning into a battering ram?"

Kitty grinned and she said, "As long as someone can lift me."

She sighed before casting a petrification spell on herself. Angel lifted the stone Kitty with a grunt and Angeal grabbed Kitty's other side.

The two carried Kitty towards the large doors and swung her back and forth a few times before throwing her through the doors. The doors caved in and opened. Kitty lay on the floor, still a statue. Niah walked over to Kitty and cast Esuna on Kitty.

Kitty took a deep breath as she returned to normal. "I hate being turned to stone."

Zack patted her head and said, "If you want, I can carry you until you feel better."

She shook her head and said, "I think I'll stay here incase anyone comes in or something."

Cloud nodded and tells her, "I'll join you after I make sure all the secret entrances are locked up."

Kitty nodded and Zack helped her sit on the bottom step of the stairs. He gave her a quick kiss before heading up the stairs with the rest following. Niah sat next to Kitty and calmly said, "I'll stay here with Kitty-Cat. Just to make sure she doesn't blow the place up or anything crazy like that."

The rest nodded and followed Cloud up the stairs. Cloud led them to a brick wall or sorts. Cloud pushed against it and they heard a click before it slid open. "Well, I guess this one is unlocked. Well, have fun and I hope you find Sephiroth in one piece."

Cloud turned and headed out the room. Angel peered inside and said, "I think one of you should go first. So if anything attacks, you can handle them."

Angeal rolls his eyes and heads down the damp stairs. Zack moved to follow, but Angel grabbed his arm. "I want to give you something before we go any further."

Zack nodded and asked, "What is it?"

Angel sighed and took one of her Buster Swords off her back and held it out to him. "Me and Angeal talked it over. We have decided that you should have your own Buster Sword. I made mine myself. I made them light, but durable. It will protect you and fight with you. Kitty helped me embed a couple of materia inside the blade, but I never used them. Anyway, it's light to me, but you might have a little trouble swinging it around so easily at first."

Zack grinned and took the much-smaller Junior Buster off his back and took the Buster Sword from Angel. He could feel the weight of it in his arm and his muscles buldged.

Angel smirked and said, "I told you it's not particularly light for anyone but me."

Zack nodded and set the sword on his back. "Thank you, Angel."

Angel smiled and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back before pulling away and saying, "We'd better get going."

Angel nodded and started walking down the stairs. "We should hurry before Angeal wonders if we got lost."

Zack chuckled and nodded before following her down. They walked down the stairs and looked around the underground area. Angel crinkled her nose and stated, "it stinks in here."

Angeal nodded and said, "It smells almost like natural gas. Nobody light a match."

Angel simply grinned before walking beside Angeal. They wandered through the underground cave. They peeked through a few doors and saw nothing but coffins. Oddly, one of the coffins sounded like it was snoring. They praticially ran away, paranoia sinking in. A few sahagins dropped in on them, but they were easily dispatched.

They sighed and were close to giving up before they heard the sound of footsteps. They opened the last door and saw Sephiroth reading through a book, pacing around the room.

He quietly read aloud, "A life form in a state of suspended animation, excavated from a 2000-year-old stratum. Professor Gast named this life form Jenova... Jenova verified as an Ancient. Jenova Project approved. Mako Reactor 1 authorized for use... My mother's name, Jenova and the Jenova Project. Could this be a coincidence? Professor Gast... Why didn't you tell me? Why did you die?"

The three ignored him and Angeal quietly said, "I think we should leave him alone for a while."

On the seventh day of Sephiroth's seclusion, Nibelheim was in a blazing inferno. Niah and Cloud made sure the townspeople were safe and uninjured. Angel and Kitty kept track of the townspeople and healed the few that got trapped under a beam or burnt. Zack and Angeal were heading to the Shinra manor, looking for Sephiroth.

The two males quickly scanned the entire building before running out. Angeal coughed from the smoke and said, "Let's get the girls and make sure they're safe first. After that, we take them to the reactor. Something tells me Seph will be there."

Zack nodded and they started running back to the town. They spotted the other four running in their direction. Kitty stopped in front of them, almost plowing into Zack. She hacked violently before breathing deeply. Zack and Angeal gave her a worried look and she waved her hand at them. "I'll be fine. I just can't stand smoke."

They nod before turning towards the direction of the reactor. Angeal said, "I have a feeling Sephiroth is at the reactor with Jenova. I suggest we head that way quickly."

Angel nodded and said, "Everybody's safe and healed from any injuries. _Somebody_ had to scare the living shit out of me, though."

She narrowed her eyes at Kitty, who was still using Zack for support. Kitty simply grinned and said, "I had to save the kid's mom. Plus, I didn't want to use up all of my magic dousing the flames."

Zack gave Kitty a worried look. "Did you run into a burning building? On your own?"

Kitty nodded. "I couldn't leave a child motherless."

Zack sighs and lightly slaps her head. "You are more reckless than anyone I have ever met in my life."

Kitty nodded once more before Cloud said, "We should hurry, shouldn't we?"

Niah grabbed hold of her daggers and made sure they were on tight. If Angeal was right and Sephiroth was in the reactor, they would have a fight on their hand with the General. "Let's go."

They ran to the reactor. Kitty's lungs were still hurting from the smoke, but she couldn't do anything about them and Zack carried her as he ran.

They walked inside the reactor and spotted Tifa laying on the ground. Cloud ran over to check on her, but she curled away from him. "I hate you! I hate SOLDIER! I hate Shinra! Leave me alone!"

His face dropped from behind the mask, but he didn't let it show. They ran up the stairs as quickly as possible and saw the large door unlocked and open. They walked inside and looked around carefully, weapons drawn.

Kitty made a motion for them to all stop and be quiet as she heard Sephiroth's voice say, "Mother, let's take back the planet together. I had an epiphany."

Kitty's eyes widen and she darted to the direction of his voice. The rest followed and they saw Sephiroth standing in front of a feminine-looking suit of metal with large wing-like pipes coming from it. "Let's go to the promised land.. Mother."

Zack glared at yelled out, "Sephiroth! Why did you set the town on fire? Why did you hurt Tifa? Answer me!"

Sephiroth chuckled and Kitty hugged Angel tightly out of fear. "Mother, they're here again. You should have ruled this planet. You were stronger, smarter. But then they came. Those inferior dullards. They came and took this planet away from you. But don't be sad, Mother. I am with you now..."

Sephiroth reached up and ripped the metal down, showing the pod behind it. An alien-like creature stared back at him. "We meet at last... Mother."

Zack stood behind Sephiroth, Buster Sword in hand. He pointed the blade at Sephiroth and said, "Sephiroth! Have you completely lost your mind?" Sephiroth simply swung Masamune, sending Zack skidding back a few steps. "We all trusted you!"

Sephiroth swung again at Zack and Zack fell down a hole. Kitty yelped and jumped after him, not thinking. The rest sighed and followed after. They landed on their feet and saw Sephiroth fighting Zack already. Looking around, they spotted Kitty passed out on the ground. Cloud went over to her with Niah and moved the unconscious female out the way.

Cloud spotted dried tears on Kitty's cheeks and guessed Sephiroth must not have wanted Kitty to see him fight Zack. He grabbed his gun and said, "I'll protect Kitty. You fight."

Niah grinned and joined the battle. Sephiroth smirked to himself, blocking one of Angeal's blows. He jumped back and Zack pointed the Buster at Sephiroth. "You're not the Sephiroth I once knew!"

Sephiroth held his arms out and looked up, saying, "I am the chosen one. I have been chosen to rule the planet,"

He held Masamune with the blade pointing down. The blade turned black and sent out a shockwave. The glass above the horizontal pillar shattered and Cloud began falling into the mako beneath. Angeal quickly spread his wings and grabbed the falling pair before they could fall. He flew up and grabbed Angel and Niah.

Zack and Sephiroth jumped up and back into the room with Jenova. Angeal flew up and set the females down. Cloud struggled out of his grip and grabbed Kitty."I'll take her to a safer place."

They nodded before Zack was thrown back into them. They flew down the stairs, but Cloud quickly got up. Cloud ran to the fallen Buster Sword and grabbed it. He ran to Sephiroth and stabbed through his midsection, breaking the glass slightly.

Sephiroth turned and said, "How dare you!"

Zack groaned from his place on the steps and said, "Cloud! Finish Sephiroth off!"

Cloud nodded and let out a cry before jumping into the air and swinging the Buster Sword. Sephiroth deflected the blow and Cloud went flying. Sephiroth clutched Jenova's head under his arm and Masamune in his left hand.

Sephiroth walked over to Cloud slowly and said, "Don't test me!" before running Masamune through Cloud and lifting Cloud into the air. Cloud grunted, but grabbed the sleek blade and stood. He lifted Sephiroth and tossed him away. Sephiroth fell down into a seemingly bottomless pit.

Cloud stumbled out the room and fell down the stairs, hitting his head repeatedly. He glanced around and saw Angeal missing along with Niah and Tifa. Kitty and Angel were both laying on the ground, knocked unconscious.

Zack reached towards Cloud and said, "You did it. Good job."

Zack and Cloud fainted. One of them awoke to a loud cackling and a sickly voice saying, "Wonderful! Four test subjects for me to work on! I'll have plenty of time to run all my tests and more."


	21. Chapter 21

Angel groaned and held her head. It was pounding like crazy, but she stood and felt a wave of dizziness. After it passed, she examined her surroundings and noticed she was in a cage of sorts. The room was large and had one table with a figure tied to it, faced down.

Angel stared a moment longer and noticed the cat ears that resided on the head of the figure. "Kitty! Wake up!"

Kitty groaned loudly and made to sit up, but her arms were restrained. Buckles ran across her legs and the back of her neck to keep her from making even the smallest of movements.

"Sissy? Where are we?"

Angel looked around, hoping for some sort of clue. "I have no clue, Kitty. Whatever happens, I'm right here, okay?"

"Okay." After a few moments of silence, "I'm scared."

"Don't be. I'll get us out of here. Your big sister is right here with you. I'm barely ten feet away. I'll find my way out this cage to get to you."

Kitty nodded ever so slightly and the door opened with a hiss. It shut and was locked. Dr Hojo stood there, rubbing his hands together and cackling.

"Now to begin the fun."

He walked over to Kitty and grabbed the syringe on the table that was hidden from Angel's view. Angel pressed herself against the bars of the cage. "What is that?"

Hojo looked at her, as if seeing her for the first time. He reached into a pocket and must've pressed something because electric volts went up the bars and sent Angel flying to the opposite side of the cage. Her back hit the bars roughly, but she was quicky back on her feet.

Hojo turned his back to her and lifted Kitty's shirt and Kitty began to shake ever so slightly but the restraints kept her from shaking too much. He placed his hand on her lower back and pushing down to hold her still. He pushed the needle into her lower spine and injected the contents.

He stepped back and grabbed a notebook and pen, ready to write. Angel's eyes locked on Kitty and watched her cautiously. "What did you inject her with?"

"I do not have to explain anything to you."

Kitty began to shake and writhe in her bonds. Her scream echoed throughout the room and Angel flinched, pressing herself against the bars. Electricity flowed through her arms, but she ignored the pain as she willed herself to go through the bars.

Kitty screamed in pure agony as the base of her spine began to grow out of her skin. Blood pooled around her and dripped onto the floor. Angel had a horrible flashback of when Kitty was first injected with mako for the first time.

Kitty's pitch heightened and Angel winced at the noise. A tiny part of her was wondering how her eardrums haven't bursted yet. The spine that was sticking out of her grew and skin began to stretch and grow around it. Fur began to grow on the skin and Kitty seemingly fainted.

Hojo tsked and walked over to Kitty. He lifted a scapel and pulled at the appendenge attached to her. Kitty yowled as he pulled harshly on it. Hojo smirked and wrote something else down.

He lifted a scalpel and sliced the very tip off, placing it in a glass container. He closed the lid of the container and set it to the side. He scribbled some more before unbuckled the straps keeping Kitty pinned.

He lifted her and stood in front of the cage. "If you even try escaping, you will never see her again."

Angel growled lowly, but backed off as Hojo opened the cage to toss Kitty inside. Kitty groaned and Angel moved to crouch beside her and examined her closely. The bleeding seemingly stopped for the time being and Kitty was whimpering softly.

Angel tapped her cheek softly after Hojo left. "C'mon, wake up Kitty-Cat. Kitty, please wake up. You're still alive and breathing. Look, you've got that tail you always wanted to match your ears."

Kitty flinched, but caustiously looked back to see her newly formed tail. It was the same color as her ears, but the tip was totally black. "Meow?"

Angel smiled sadly. "Yes, you're even more of a cat now. How do you feel?"

Kitty winced. "I feel like a thousand needles are being jabbed into every nerve ending. Why did Sephiroth do that to us?"

"I don't know. Don't worry about him right now. We've got to find our way out of here. Think you could pick the lock?"

Kitty slowly put her arm through the bars and lightly felt the lock. The bars were far enough apart so that she could easily put her arm between them. Her fingers played with the lock and she pulled her arms back through and shook her head. "No can do. It's needs a key card and a passcode. The passcode isn't the problem; it's the key card."

Angel nodded as Kitty laid her head down in Angel's lap. "I'm scared, Angel."

Angel cautiously leaned back and pulled Kitty closer to her. "I'm right here with you, Katherine."

Kitty chuckled sadly. "You haven't called me that since we first met. You've always called me Kitty."

Angel sighed, petting Kitty's head. "Go to sleep. I have a feeling we won't be getting much of it."

"You'll be here when I wake up, right?"

"Of course."

Kitty drew herself closer to Angel, her tail wrapping around Angel's waist lightly. Angel petted Kitty's head as she fell asleep, purring softly. Angel could laugh at the younger girl; cats purred when content or happy - not locked in a cage.

~Some time later~

Kitty awoke to Angel being pulled away from her. Her eyes widened and she tightened her grip on Angel. Hojo had a tight grip on Angel's arm and was pulling her out the cage. "Let go before I electrocute you."

Kitty hissed at him and Angel lightly poped her head and said, "Let go. I don't want you getting hurt for no reason at all."

Kitty deflated sadly, but release Angel to curl in the corner farthest from Hojo. "Be strong, Angel. Don't show any weaknesses."

Angel grinned at her as she laid face down on the table with her head turned so she could keep her eyes on Kitty. "See? I'm right here."

Kitty nodded as Hojo grabbed two syringes. They were equally large and had the same glowing green contents. Angel noticed the scared look in Kitty's eyes and calmly said, "Kitty. Don't scream for me. Don't cuss for me. And don't give this man the pleasure of seeing you cry for me."

Hojo cackled as he injected the first syringe behind her skull. "How sweet. Still protecting the young one even as you're about to go through hell." Angel growled lowly, keeping her lips sealed as he injected the second into her lower spine. "Now, we wait for it to do its' job."

He stood off to the side, writing in the notebook he had earlier. Kitty watched as Angel began to bleed from her scalp. Her own ears twitched, remembering the pain of them first growing in. Angel held Kitty's stare and winced, her eyes narrowing at the pain.

Kitty pressed herself against the bars and Hojo shocked her, making her jump back. She stood inches away from the bars to prevent any more shocks and watched as Angel began to flinch ever so slightly.

The skin on Angel's lower back broke open as her spine began to grow out of it. Angel's eyes rolled into the back of her head, but she didn't utter a whimper. Kitty felt tears well up and forced herself to turn away to curl up in a corner.

She didn't open her eyes until the cage door was opened and Angel was dropped harshly on the ground. She scurried over to sit beside her sister, hands moving frantically above her.

She heard Hojo say, "I should've figured she wouldn't show weakness when it came to her own well being. However..." His eyes lingered on Kitty as he recalled the reaction Angel gave while Kitty was being tested on. Angel had thrown every cuss word in her arsenal at him and then some.

He turned on his heel and left them once again. Kitty examined the ears and tail that Angel now had. The were wolf instead of cat. Both black with dark red stripes that went around rather than up and down. Kitty smiled softly, but sadly.

"We match, sissy. Now there's no way to hide the fact we're sisters. We're both part animal."

Angel coughed, chuckling slightly. "Please talk quieter." Kitty nodded. "So, what animal are they?"

Kitty smiled. "I think they're wolf. I stayed quiet like you told me to."

She was whispering, but to Angel it sounded like she was still talking pretty loudly. "Good girl. I'd give you a treat, but I don't have any chocolate on me."

Kitty gave her a sad smile. "That's alright. You can pat my head when you get feeling less sore. I'll watch over you while you sleep. You can even use me as a pillow if you want to."

Angel smiled sadly. Even though Kitty was still obviously tired and sore, she was still looking out for Angel's well-being. "Thanks, but you don't have to worry about me."

Kitty shook her head stubbornly. "You just grew two ears and a tail. I got a tail. I'm not nearly as tired as you are."

Angel nodded in defeat and laid down as much as she could the small cage. It was about eight feet high, pressing against the ceiling, and five feet in diameter. Angel placed her head in Kitty's lap and laid on her side, curling up slightly. Kitty smiled and petted Angel's head, watching her new tail begin to wag slightly.

"Stop that."

Kitty giggled, but stopped petting her. Angel stayed awake for a few minutes before falling asleep. Kitty looked around sadly. 'Please save us, somebody. Please, anybody.' Her silent plea did not go unnoticed, though.

~Two years later~

Hojo's Notes

 _Day 1_

 _Experiment K responds quickly and violently to injection. Experiment A reacts violently seeing K in pain, but will not easily respond to injection. A orders K to stay silent and K listens loyally. K seems to be highly submissive to ones close to her._

 _Day 2_

 _I found A sleeping with her head in K's lap. K seemed to be highly exhausted, but still found the energy to hiss at me. Her punishment is being locked in a dark room until I see fit that she can be returned to her 'sister'. Once A awoke, she began to growl and demand where K was. Of course, I did not lower myself to answer her._

 _Day 4_

 _Over the past 48 hours, I deprived both experiments of food and water. A does not let her weakness show as easily as K. A has become silghtly more submissive when I told her I would harm K more if she didn't listen. A will only allow herself to scream in agony when K is not in the room._

 _Day 5_

 _I found K curled up in a corner in the fetal position. Her pupils were dilated completely and she was muttering something about, 'Shiny' and 'Puppy'. She did not seem to recognize me when I entered the room. Was it that she is unable to see in the dark? I must test this theory._

 _Day 6_

 _I finally allowed both of the experiments half an apple and a bowl of water. A refused to even look at them until I left the room. Even then, she only ate half the apple and lifted the bowl to drink from it. Whenever I gave K her food and water, I also threw a small Nibeel wolf in with it to test K's sight in the dark. Apparently, she can see in the dark because she quickly swiped the apple half and cowered in a corner as she ate it while keeping her eyes locked on the wolf._

 _Day 7_

 _When I returned to K, the wolf was growling at her but she refused to acknowledge its' presence. The wolf grew agitated with her and snapped at her, only to be quickly punched in its' muzzle. It whimpered, tucked tail, and ran to the opposite side of the room. For A, I watched her battle with K against Fair and Hewley. I noticed that even though she was struck by the Buster Sword, her skin did not break easily and her strength could easily rival Hewleys'._

 _Day 10_

 _Apparently, K and the wolf were 'friends'. Whenever I got close to her, the wolf would growl at me with its' haunches raised. I had the wolf killed and K moved into a different room with nothing but a large cage inside. Whenever she attempted to escape, she earned herself 300Kilowats. She did this five times before fainting. A is still unresponsive to me._

 _Day 12_

 _I injected K with a special serum of mine that, to put it simply, released the animal inside of her. Her nails grew longer, as did her canines, and her pupils became slited like a cats'. I placed A inside with her and watched as A took the beating K gave to her. A refused to fight back against K._

 _Day 13_

 _I decided to leave the two experiments in the cage together. K is still violent towards A, but her fighting seemingly stopped. A keeps speaking to K in an attempt to get her to 'come back'. So far, all of her attempts have failed. I do not expect much change from K._

 _Day 17_

 _I was proven wrong, sadly. A simply walked over to K and punched her in the head. K fell over slightly, but blinked rapidly before crying pathetically and begging to be forgiven. K was seemingly aware of what she did to A, but could not stop it. These are very important notes to me so I can improve my serum._

 _Day 24_

 _I once again separated them. A was placed in a closet of a room and had weights placed on her shoulders. I started with 100 Ibs on each shoulder. Her bones did not even tremble at the weight. It seems she has trained her entire body to be highly durable. I will see how durable her body is very soon._

 _Day 26_

 _200 more Ibs were placed on each shoulder. Her clavicle trembled slightly and her breathing became hampered, but she still stood straight. i decided to place an entire pack of Nibeel wolves with K. The alpha male had the others stay behind as he examined K's tiny body. Both experiments had lost easily 50 Ibs each. It is more notable on K due to her small structure._

 _Day 30_

 _The Nibeel wolves have accepted K into their pack. I cannot even remove a single wolf from the cage, they are so closely packed. They stay in a circle in the center of the cage with the alpha and K in the center of the protective circle. A's clavicle finally broke under 1000 Ibs of pressure. I was feeling generous and allowed her one Potion. She drank it slowly, allowing each fragment to heal mostly by itself._

The pages were turned quickly, eyes flashing back and forth across them. They finally stopped after a moment.

 _Day 390_

 _It has been a year and three moths since I obtained my experiments. A has sent herself into a coma and refuses to awaken, but I refuse to stop testing on her. K's mind has slipped and she acts as though as she is part of the pack of Nibeel wolves still caged with her. I only feed them once a week, so I wonder why they haven't eaten her yet. I believe the alpha male has claimed her as his 'mate' of sorts._

More pages turn to the latest one and the eyes widened.

 _Day 730_

 _I have been putting different species of fiends in K's cage to see how they interact. She always seems to tame them. Other than the first Nibeel wolf, none other has attempted to strike at her. Even the rabid Humbaba. I threw A in there once she awoke with K eventually to see how the fiend would react. It growled at her, but she responded by growling back and it backed away._

 _These girls are powerful and do not realize it. K can bend her body in ways that would break even project S's bones. A has adapted and her bones toughened to the point where 1000 Ibs will not even make her shudder._

 _This is my final experiment on them. I will first place them in tubs of mako for two hours and then inject with pure Shiva cells. The demonic cells could possibly kill them, but I still have two experiments remaining._

The book fell out of the gloved hands and the eyes narrowed even more. The cloaked figure jumped back into the large air duct and all traces of them ever being there was gone. The figure crawled through the ducts, peering through the vents.

After almost half an hour of crawling, the figure stopped once he saw Kitty and Angel. They were both strapped to tables and _reeked_ of mako. The tables were close enough that their unstrapped arms could reach across and grip hands. Their arms were nothing but skin and bones. In fact, their entire bodies seem to be skin and bones. Not an ounce of fat or muscle could be seen on either of their bodies.

Kitty felt a tear run down her face and gripped Angel's hand tighter. "I'm scared, Angel."

Angel nodded. "I am too."

"I've been wondering something for a while now."

"What is it?"

"What's your real name?"

Angel sighed. "My real name is Seraphina. It means fiery-winged."

Kitty smiled ironically. "It fits you perfectly. With your fiery temper and fire-based materia. How long did it take you to master your first fire materia?"

"About two weeks max. I'm sorry I got you kidnapped."

"It's not your fault. It's nobody's fault. Hear that, Shiny? It's not your fault."

Sephiroth blinked in surprise. He didn't expect her to know he was there, but her hearing must've gotten better over time. He opened the vent and slid down the hole, landing near their entwined hands. "Hojo was planning on injecting you both with Shiva genes. It would've killed you both."

He worked quickly, undoing the buckles within record time. Once Kitty was freed, she slapped him harshly before hugging his waist tightly. "I missed you Shiny."

His cheek stung; where did she get this strength, he wondered. Kitty released him and he turned to Angel. He undid the buckles and she simply punched him where Kitty slapped him. "You deserve a helluva lot more than that, but I feel like shit right now. Get us out of here."

Sephiroth nodded and motioned for Kitty to stand on the table. "You'll have to climb on my shoulders to get in the vents. Can you do it?"

He held both her hands as she stood on his shoulders. Her light weight almost scared him. He knew from her glomping him that her weight had dropped at least down to a third of her average. Her legs shook violently and he saw all the puncture wounds and cuts on her legs. She eventually hauled herself into the vent and disappeared from view.

Then, he turned to Angel. "I think you'll only need a boost. You're a little taller than she is."

Angel nodded and placed her foot in his entwined hands. He lifted her up as the door opened. Angel jumped as gunshots filled the room. She pulled her legs up and Sephiroth drew Masamune, blocking the bullets swiftly. He jumped up into the vents and closed them quickly. He manuvered around Kitty to get in front of her. "Follow me. I know the way out from here."

The girls nodded and followed him. For once, Kitty didn't have a single perverted thought run through her mind as her eyes stayed glued onto Sephiroth's (very fine) behind. He stopped eventually and pushed out a vent. Sunlight came in and both girls winced.

Sephiroth climbed out and held his hands out. "Jump. I'll catch you."

Kitty closed her eyes and felt Sephiroth catch her. He set her down and she clutched his waist, breathing heavily. Angel stood after being caught and looked at Sephiroth. "Now what?"

A black wing appeared from Sephiroth's right shoulder. Kitty stared in awe, but her vision was slowly darkening. She fell limp against Sephiroth's back and he sighed sadly. He turned cautiously and lifted her into his arms. "Can you hold onto me until we get there?"

Angel nodded and wrapped her arms around his neck, wary of the single wing. It flapped once and they left the ground. Angel watched as the Shinra Manor disappeared from view. Men filed out and began shooting at them, but every bullet missed.

She could almost hear Hojo cussing every pour soul in the building for letting two of his 'precious experiments' escape.

~TIme Skip~

The next time Angel awoke, she felt a cool cloth on her forehead. She opened her eyes and saw Angeal smiling down at her.

"It's about time you woke up."

She winced and felt an ear twitch. Slowly, she reached up and felt her head. Angel felt two furry ears on the top of her head and groaned. She looked down and saw a wolf tail lazily moving.

"Well, this is certainly a change."

Angeal nodded and sat down beside her on the bed. "We're at the Shinra Manor. We would've gone farther, but we didn't want to risk injuring either of you."

Angel nodded and laid back on the bed. The cloth had moved and Angeal readjusted it for her. "Where's Kitty?"

"She's in another room with Sephiroth. She's safe."

Angel nodded again. "Keep a close eye on her. We weren't together for all of those damned tests and I don't know what he could've done to her."

Angeal sighed and moved to lay beside her. He looked down at her arms and legs and saw the multiple cuts and red dots from injections. He could hardly imagine what happened to them. Sephiroth told him that the two went through hell in that lab.

Angeal gently rubbed her arm, silently telling her to rest. Angel moved to lay next to him and rest her head on his arm. Her nose crinkled as she smelt his unusually strong scent. She heard faint footsteps and her ears angled themselves to pinpoint the sound.

The door opened and she saw Kitty standing there with Sephiroth. Kitty had her hands around Sephiroth's arm, using him for support. "Your senses are stronger than usual. You'll get used to them in time."

Angel nodded and said, "They hurt."

Kitty nodded slowly. "They always hurt at first. It takes time and patience to get used to them. Trust me."

Angel looked down and grabbed hold of Angeal's open hand. Kitty walked over and crawled on Angel's free side to curl up. Sephiroth sat stiffly at the foot of the bed, watching them. Kitty opened her arms to Sephiroth and he moved to hug her cautiously.

Kitty huffed and pulled Sephiroth for him to rest his head on her stomach. Sephiroth moved his body so he was laying between her legs. "Where's Niah?"

Sephiroth and Angeal glanced at each other. Sephiroth cooly said, "She ran off somewhere. She didn't say where; just that she had to get stronger."

Angel nodded and wrapped an arm around Kitty's shoulder. "We're a little broken right now, aren't we?"

Kitty smiled. "Yeah, but we're still family. We'll get the boys back when we get better. That's a promise."

Sephiroth shook his head. "That will take time. Don't rush healing. You need to heal physically and mentally."

Kitty nodded and yawned. "Let's start by sleeping some more."

Angeal chuckled. "You two have already slept for a month which started when Seph brought you two back. I suppose you two could use some more rest to heal."

Angel nodded and snuggled down. "As long as you're all still here when we wake up, we'll be perfectly fine. After all, family need each other to heal."

Kitty nodded. "Let's get some sleep. Promise you'll be here when we wake up."

Sephiroth and Angeal nodded. They wouldn't go anywhere with these two messed up like they were. Family need each other more than ever when they're hurting.


	22. Chapter 22

Zack panted and his arms trembled to hold up his large sword. Three men from the army started walking towards him and aimed their guns at his head. He trembled to lift his sword, but collapsed to his knees.

The three men chuckled and prepared to shoot. Zack closed his eyes and softly mumbled under his breath before several gunshots rang out. He blinked when he didn't feel them and heard a vioce say, "Nice job there, pup, but we'll take care of it from here."

He gasped and looked up at Angel. KItty stood in front of her, holding up a defensive shield and Niah was finishing off the three men. Kitty smiled and kneeled down in front of him. She started healing his wounds and said, "Don't worry about these guys anymore. We're here to save you."

Niah smirked and leaned forward like she was ready to pounce, her tail whipping back and forth. "You just sit there and enjoy the show, Pup. We'll finish off these assholes."

Zack nodded and sat down to lean against some rocks. Kitty smiled at him and kissed his cheek before grabbing her staff and saying, "We'll kick ass for you. And afterward, you can propose to me and we can start planning Angeal and Angel's wedding. Sound good?"

Zack dumbly stared up at her before nodding. Angel sighed and grabbed Kitty's cloak before dragging her off. Kitty pouted and pulled her hood up to hide her ears from the rain.

Niah grinned and eyed the army. Zack had taken out a good chunk of them, but they had reinforcements this time. "Let's play, girls."

Angel grinned and gripped her sword tightly as flames licked the blade, steaming slightly as the rain hit it. Kitty stabbed the ground with her staff and Titan appeared beside her.

The four glanced at each other before charging at the army as guns started blazing. Titan stomped his foot and a large crack in the earth appeared, sending part of the army down to their deaths. Titan frowned and closed it quickly before clenching his fists and raising his arms to the sky.

Large stone pillars rose out the ground and Niah grinned widely. She launched herself off of the pillars, flipping off of them as she flung her chakrams at the enemy. She opened her mouth and let out a screech, forcing several enemies to fall to their knees as their ears bled.

Angel grinned and swung her sword through the army as they collapse. Blood splattered onto her cheek and bullets grazed her skin as she swiftly moved through them. She ignored them and kept moving as she swept through them. She cleared a clean path and Kitty giggled from her perch.

Kitty smiled and opened her staff to pull out her Comet materia. She stood up and held it in front of her chest and started muttering words under her breath. The materia glowed brightly and Titan quickly formed barriers around Niah and Angel, halting their movements and protecting them.

The already dark sky darkened further and clouds swirled into a circle. A bright red spot appeared in the sky before growing as it grew nearer. Kitty collapsed as Titan formed a barrier around her.

The comet fell to the ground, drawing attention of two certain Turks. Zack gaped from his spot and stared in awe as the shockwaves blasted through, effectively decimating the remaining army.

Titan smiled softly and lowered the pillars back into the earth. He uncovered the females and gently picked up Kitty before carrying her over to where Angel sat. Angel panted softly and took Kitty from Titan.

Angel gently stroked Kitty's hair back and Niah said, "The cat did good, wolf girl."

Angel nodded and said, "She'll be asleep for a while before her strength has returned, but yes, she did do good. She did very good."

Niah smiled as Cloud started dragging himself over and walked over to help him. He smiled up at her and kissed her cheek. Niah rolled her eyes and smiled at him. "Let's go home, Choco."

Cloud nodded and said, "I like that idea."

Zack fought to pick himself up and used his sword for support as he walked. He smiled as the sky opened up and Angeal softly landed on the ground beside Angel. He kissed her cheek and said, "Reno and Rude are on their way in a chopper to carry you all back to Midgar."

Angel smiled up at him and said, "I think I would like to stop fighting for once and settle down."

Angeal smiled and nodded, saying, "We can open up a flower shop and have a banora tree for fresh apple pies also."

Kitty mumbled, "I wan' a pie."

Angeal chuckled and patted her head before noticing Zack's struggling to walk. Angeal smiled softly and walked over to help Zack stand as the chopper landed next to them. Reno grinned and yelled, "Come on over and we'll take care of ya!"

Angeal sighed and carried Zack over as Niah and Cloud approached them. Niah smiled and helped Cloud into the chopper. Reno helped Kitty in and Titan disappeared after swiftly kissing Kitty's forehead.

Kitty smiled in her sleep and Reno set her in Zack's lap. Zack sighed and leaned back in his seat. He calmly said, "We did it, Angeal. Are you proud of us?"

Angeal chuckled and patted his head. "Of course I'm proud. I guess now I won't have to give you any more speeches about honor or dreams."

Zack smiled and rested in his seat for the ride home. Reno chuckled and took his seat before glancing back and smiling. Rude shifted and said, "Let them sleep. They deserve it."

Reno nodded and said, "Not everyone defeats an entire army in a day's time. I hope they finally get a chance to rest. Man, I hope they have some cute kids."

Rude chuckled lowly. "I wouldn't duobt it, but I wouldn't let them hear that."

Reno nodded. "They kick some serious ass."

THE END


End file.
